A women-only dating safety app, Tea, has been hacked, leaking over 72,000 images including verification selfies and government IDs, as well as more than 1 million private messages. The breach was confirmed by the company last Friday.
The app allowed women to share information about men they were dating, similar to the 'Are we dating the same guy?' Facebook groups. To verify gender, users had to submit a selfie, which has now been compromised.
The attack appears to be revenge-driven, originating from 4chan users who called for a 'hack and leak' campaign. Stolen data has been posted on 4chan and X, with a site reportedly created for rating women's selfies from the leak.
While ethical concerns exist about such apps sharing unverified information, they arose because dating sites often fail to protect women. A survey found 31% of women reported sexual assault or rape by someone met through online dating. Tea was intended as a safe space, but this breach may lead to legal action.
