Dating Safety App “Tea” Hacked, Exposing Thousands of User Images and Posts

A popular dating safety app designed to help women vet potential partners and share information about dating experiences has suffered a notable data breach, exposing the personal information of thousands of its users. tea Dating Advice, a US-based app exclusively for women, confirmed that unauthorized access lead to the exposure of approximately 72,000 images submitted by members.

Sensitive Data Compromised, Including Verification photos

The breach, which affected users who signed up before February 2024, is particularly concerning as some of the compromised images included photos of women holding government-issued identification for verification purposes. Tea’s own privacy policy explicitly states that such images are “deleted immediately” after authentication, raising questions about the app’s data handling practices.In addition to the verification photos, Tea later admitted that a further 59,000 images were accessed, dating back over two years. These images reportedly include posts, comments, and direct messages shared within the app. The company stated that the breached photos “can in no way be linked to posts within Tea” and that it blocks screenshots to prevent external sharing of in-app content.

App’s Mission and Controversial Features

Tea Dating Advice, founded in November 2022 by software engineer Sean Cook, aims to empower women by providing tools to check potential partners for marital status, registered sex offenses, and to guard against “catfishing” through reverse image searches. A core, and often debated, feature of the app allows women to anonymously share “red flag” behaviors of men they’ve dated, and also highlight those with “green flag” qualities. This feature has drawn criticism from some who argue it could lead to privacy invasions and defamation for men.

Cook was reportedly inspired to create Tea after witnessing his mother’s negative experiences with online dating, stating his shock at how easily “catfish, scammers and criminals” could exploit women on dating platforms with little protection from customary apps.

Response and Ongoing Investigation

tea has stated that it has “acted fast” in response to the breach and is “working with some of the most trusted cyber security experts.” The company emphasized its commitment to protecting its community, declaring, “We’re taking every step to protect this community – now and always.” BBC News has reached out to Tea for further comment.

Precedent of Similar Controversies

The controversy surrounding Tea echoes similar situations involving women-only dating discussion groups. Earlier this year,a lawsuit was filed against meta,Facebook’s parent company,by an individual named Nikko D’Ambrosio concerning statements made about him in a private chat group. However, the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed by a federal judge in Illinois. The incident highlights the ongoing tension between the desire for women’s safety and community support in dating and concerns about privacy and potential misuse of shared information.