NordVPN calculator: how much is your personal data worth on the dark web?

NordVPN has developed a calculator, drawing on an analysis of tens of thousands of listings, to estimate what your personal data could be worth if it were sold on the dark web.

Have you ever had an account hacked? Or has an online service you use suffered a large-scale data breach? If so, personal information about you may be available for sale on dark web sites. After all, one purpose of data theft is to trade this valuable information. If you want to find out what someone might pay for data linked to you, there is a test you can try.

NordVPN's personal data calculator

Offered by NordVPN, the tool provides an estimated figure once you state which documents you hold, such as a passport or driving licence, and which online accounts you use. The initiative is intended to make internet users more aware of the risks associated with the sale of personal data. “Every online account you own has a price on the Dark Web. Your streaming subscriptions, email address, banking credentials, social media profiles. Most people would be shocked to learn how cheaply a criminal can buy their entire digital identity,” says Marijus Briedis, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at NordVPN.

NordVPN created this calculator using an analysis of 75,000 listings advertising stolen data for sale on the dark web.

Are your data already being sold on the dark web? There is a tool to check

NordVPN's calculator estimates how much someone might be willing to pay for your data, based on your country and the information that could have been stolen.

The same page also includes another tool that lets you check whether your personal data are actually on the dark web. Simply enter an email address and it will search the dark web for information connected with it.

It will identify the account involved and explain the circumstances in which your data were leaked before ultimately being offered for sale on the dark web.

How the dark web check works

What we think

NordVPN has found an effective way to raise awareness of online security while promoting its own service. Its products include a feature that alerts users when data relating to them are discovered on the dark web.

NordVPN may also benefit from Google's decision this year to discontinue its “dark web report” feature, which offered a similar alert system free of charge.