App Tea Confirms Data Leak Affecting User Photos
Tea, an application aimed at allowing women to have secure discussions about men they’ve dated, recently acknowledged a significant issue related to user privacy. It has been revealed that thousands of selfies and photo IDs may have been compromised.
The company reports that about 72,000 images have been leaked online, which includes roughly 13,000 selfies or images with photo IDs that users submitted for account verification.
Moreover, another 59,000 images from posts, comments, and direct messages were found accessible without user consent, according to statements from Tea representatives.
Despite this breach, the company assures that no email addresses or phone numbers have been affected. They indicated that the issue largely impacts users who registered before February 2024.
“Tea employs third-party cybersecurity experts and we work continuously to safeguard our system,” a spokesperson stated. “Currently, there’s no evidence that any additional user data has been compromised. Protecting our users’ privacy and data remains our top priority.”
Tea is pitched as a secure platform for women to discreetly inquire about men they meet on dating apps like Tinder and Bumble. The app claims to ensure users are “safe,” to minimize concerns over fake profiles.
The app’s description emphasizes the importance of identifying potential red flags before embarking on a date and aims to help women view the real person behind the profile.
In related news, 404 Media reported that 4Chan users were the ones to discover the exposed database, claiming it was accessible to anyone. While covering this story, 404 Media noted that the URL containing a detailed list connected to the Tea app had been locked and now shows a “permission denied” error.
Recently, Tea announced it has reached 4 million users, marking a significant milestone for the platform.
