4Chan users expose Tea app data breach

4Chan users discovered a personal data breach of the Tea app, a platform designed for women only to share their dating experiences with men.

An unauthorised access took place on a more than two-year-old database of the legacy storage system. Many media agencies and the Tea app itself confirmed the news.

Approximately 72,000 images were exposed, including 13,000 photo IDs required for account verification and 59,000 images from messages, comments, and posts.

The Tea app spokesperson said: “This data was originally stored in compliance with law enforcement requirements related to cyberbullying prevention.”

“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,” they added.

4Chan users posted a link to download the database of images and identification photos.

The Tea app is a women-only app designed to give dating advice. The platform reveals the catfish by running background checks, searching criminal records and reverse-searching photos.

According to reports, the Tea app became the top free app on the Apple App Store. It has 4 million users and surpassed one million signups in recent days.

The app is facing backlash for privacy concerns, gender discrimination against men and misleading information, which may cause potential damage to reputation.

Who owns the Tea app?

Tea was founded by Sean Cook after his mother had a negative dating experience (catfished) online.