Questions tagged [k-anonymity]

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Why does HIBP use k-anonymity when checking passwords?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding the purpose of k-anonymity, but I don't see the why HIBP uses it when checking user passwords. This website, which explains HIBP's implementation of it, says, "The client will then truncate the hash to a predetermined…
noahG3
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How choose a k for k-anonymity?

I have manually scraped multiple pages of search results on Google and haven't found a single suggestion as to how to find an optimal k when you are trying to "k-anonymize" your dataset. All I can find is the obvious fact that "higher k = more…
Denny
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What is the definition of "sensitive attribute" in the context of k-anonimity?

I have encountered the term "sensitive attribute" multiple times when reading up on the concept of k-anonimity -- but the texts never formally define what this term means. Take this example of a k-anonymized table from…
Denny
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How to explain "the k-anonymity model used by HaveIBeenPwned for pwned passwords doesn't expose your passwords" to a layman?

People are naturally skeptical when they hear about the HaveIBeenPwned pwned passwords search, because who would in their right mind enter their password into a random website? And sure, HIBP uses k-anonymity to make sure they don't know your…
Nzall
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