LinkedIn has a special place in password history: its 2012 breach ultimately exposed well over a hundred million password hashes, and those cracked passwords have been feeding attack lists ever since. If your LinkedIn password dates back years, matches a password you use elsewhere, or you've had a "new sign-in" alert you can't place, change it. There's a professional angle too - A hijacked LinkedIn account doesn't just leak your data, it messages your colleagues and clients with scams under your name and photo, with a credibility no random spam email can match.
Change Your LinkedIn Password on the Web
- Log in at linkedin.com.
- Click your profile photo (the Me menu) in the top navigation bar.
- Choose Settings & Privacy.
- In the left-hand menu, open Sign in & security.
- Click Change password.
- Enter your current password, then the new password twice.
- Leave the option to sign out of other devices checked if it's offered - It's the whole point when you suspect trouble.
- Save.
Generate the new password rather than inventing it: a random 16+ character string from a password generator beats any human pattern, and since your manager types it for you, its unmemorability costs nothing. If you're between managers, the encrypted Password Wallet can store it meanwhile.
Change It in the Mobile App
- Open the LinkedIn app and tap your profile photo in the top corner.
- Tap Settings at the bottom of the panel that slides out.
- Tap Sign in & security, then Change password.
- Enter the current and new passwords, opt to sign out other sessions if presented, and save.
The mobile path mirrors the web path almost setting-for-setting, which makes LinkedIn one of the easier platforms to secure from a phone.
If You've Forgotten Your Password
- On the login screen, tap or click Forgot password?.
- Enter the email address or phone number attached to your account.
- LinkedIn sends a verification code or reset link - Email is typical, SMS if you've linked a number.
- Verify, then set the new password.
If you no longer control the email on the account, LinkedIn's recovery flow can, in some cases, verify identity through additional signals; a long-standing option even involves government-ID verification for accounts locked in a takeover dispute. Start from the "need help signing in" links on the login page rather than searching for support forms, and never hand your reset code to anyone who contacts you - That request is itself the scam, a pattern our overview of social engineering attacks dissects.
After You Change It
- Check "Where you're signed in." Under Sign in & security, LinkedIn lists active sessions with approximate location and device. End anything unfamiliar - Or end them all and log back in fresh.
- Enable two-step verification in the same menu. Choose an authenticator app over SMS if you have one; setup takes a minute and blocks nearly all credential-stuffing takeovers.
- Review linked email addresses and phone numbers. Attackers who had access sometimes add their own address as a backdoor for future resets. Remove anything that isn't yours.
- Update the entry in your password manager immediately, before autofill re-submits the old one.
- Change lookalikes elsewhere. If the old LinkedIn password - Or a near variant - Protects other accounts, rotate those too. Fifteen focused minutes covers it, per the password hygiene checklist.
Your LinkedIn account is a megaphone pointed at everyone you've ever worked with. Secure it like a work asset, not a social extra.
The three routes at a glance:
| Route | Path | Requires | Can end other sessions? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Web change | Me → Settings & Privacy → Sign in & security | Current password | Yes - Checkbox during change |
| App change | Profile photo → Settings → Sign in & security | Current password | Yes - Same option |
| Forgot-password reset | Login → Forgot password | Email or SMS code | Yes - After reset |
Since LinkedIn sign-in is often tangled with a work or personal Google address, it's worth confirming that account is solid too - The steps are in our guide to changing your Google password.
FAQ
Was my LinkedIn password really leaked?
If your account predates 2013, quite possibly: the 2012 LinkedIn breach exposed a massive trove of weakly hashed passwords that were later cracked and published. Check your email address on haveibeenpwned.com. Even if you're not listed, a password reused across sites inherits the risk of every one of them.
Will changing my LinkedIn password sign me out everywhere?
Only if you select that option during the change, or end sessions manually. Use the "Where you're signed in" page under Sign in & security to review every active session and terminate the ones you don't recognize - It's the fastest way to confirm you're alone in the account.
Someone is sending spam from my LinkedIn account. What first?
Change the password immediately with the sign-out-other-devices option enabled, then check Sign in & security for unfamiliar sessions and remove any email addresses or phone numbers you didn't add. Then turn on two-step verification. Finally, warn recent contacts to ignore messages sent during the takeover window.
I log in to LinkedIn with Google. Do I still have a LinkedIn password?
If you only ever used Google sign-in, there may be no separate LinkedIn password to change - Your Google account is the key, so secure that. If you originally registered with email and later linked Google, the old LinkedIn password still exists and still works; make sure it's strong and current.