LinkedIn confirms massive data breach

Social networking site LinkedIn acknowledged on Wednesday that hackers stole the passwords of some of its users.

Reports on Wednesday morning indicated that hackers had obtained the passwords to 6.5 million LinkedIn accounts, or about 4 percent of the site's users.

The company said it will disable the passwords of the affected users and instruct them to create new passwords.

LinkedIn also said it has implemented new security measures to protect its users' personal information.

"We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience this has caused our members," Vicente Silveira, an engineering director for LinkedIn, wrote in a blog post. "We take the security of our members very seriously."

Silveira said the company is continuing to investigate how the breach occurred.

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-Calif.) expressed concern about LinkedIn's breach and said the incident shows the need for Congress to pass data security legislation.

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