Tea App Data Breach Exposes Thousands of Users' Photos and IDs

A significant security breach at the Tea app, a platform popular among women for sharing information about men, has led to the leak of approximately 72,000 images, including 13,000 verification selfies and government ID photos. The incident was confirmed by a Tea spokesperson on Friday, who stated that the compromised data originated from a database more than two years old, initially stored to comply with law enforcement requirements related to cyberbullying prevention.

The breach follows a surge in the app's popularity, with Tea recently topping the Apple App Store's free app rankings and reporting nearly a million new signups. The app requires users to submit selfies for verification, which it claims are deleted after review, and promises anonymity beyond chosen usernames. Despite these measures, the leaked data has raised concerns among users about privacy and security.

The company said it has engaged third-party cybersecurity experts and is working continuously to secure its systems. > "Protecting our users’ privacy and data is our highest priority. Tea is taking every necessary step to ensure the security of our platform and prevent further exposure," a spokesperson said.

The breach came after a thread on the message board 4Chan called for a "hack and leak" campaign targeting the app. Links to the stolen database and user identification photos have since appeared on 4Chan and X. NBC News has not independently verified the authenticity of the leaked images.

Tea was created by Sean Cook, who cited his mother's negative experiences with online dating as inspiration. The app allows users to search for men by name, leave comments, and conduct background checks. It also claims to donate a portion of its profits to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, which confirmed the company as a donor.

The platform has faced criticism from some men who fear misrepresentation or doxxing, as well as concerns from users about potential cyberbullying. In response to the breach, several users have voiced worries about their data privacy, especially as the app's user base continues to grow rapidly.