Dating Safety App Faces Major Security Breach, Exposing Users' Private Images

The breach reportedly affected around 72,000 images, including those intended for identity verification, and an additional 59,000 images related to posts and comments, sparking concerns over user safety.

A US-based dating safety app designed exclusively for women has fallen victim to a significant hack, resulting in the unauthorized exposure of a substantial number of users' images and personal communications. Tea Dating Advice, which boasts a user base of approximately 1.6 million women, confirmed that as many as 72,000 images submitted by its members were compromised during the breach. Many of these images included women holding identification for verification, despite the app's privacy policy promising such images would be "immediately deleted" after being authenticated.

Tea has stated that the breach predominantly impacted individuals who signed up prior to February 2024 and emphasized that it is actively collaborating with recognized cybersecurity experts to navigate the situation. The app has gained traction in popularity while facing criticism for allegedly promoting an anti-male sentiment. Among its features, Tea allows women to perform background checks on potential partners, revealing their marital status or any history as registered sex offenders. It also provides tools for reverse image searches to guard against "catfishing," a tactic involving fake online personas.

One of Tea's most contentious features is its mechanism for sharing experiences related to men users have dated, enabling women to highlight both "red flags" and "green flags." The company maintains that the photos accessed during the breach cannot be directly tied to any posts or interactions within the platform due to protections against screenshots being shared outside the app. However, an additional alarming revelation came when Tea disclosed that hackers had also accessed 59,000 images, including posts, comments, and direct messages from over the past two years.

The founder of Tea, software engineer Sean Cook, launched the app in November 2022, motivated by the troubling experiences faced by women he observed in the online dating landscape. Cook expressed his dismay at the ease with which potential predators and scammers could exploit women on dating platforms and criticized traditional apps for their inadequate protective measures. Nevertheless, concerns have emerged that such platforms, while aiming to enhance safety, may inadvertently expose men to potential defamation and privacy violations.

In related news, an individual recently took legal action against Meta, the parent company of Facebook, due to remarks made about him in a group chat known as "Are We Dating the Same Guy," which further underscores the complex issues surrounding privacy and potential harm related to user experiences on dating apps.