'Tea' Dating App Criticized By User And Sued Due To Personal Data Leakage

Tea app, women's protective equipment in the online world of dating (photo: x @TStartupJourney)

JAKARTA - A dating app that is promoted as a safe platform for women is now facing sharp scrutiny and lawsuits. This comes after two incidents of consecutive data breaches exposed users' personal information, including selfies and sensitive conversations.

An application called Tea, which had gone viral as a female protective tool in the online dating world, was reported to have experienced two major violations that exposed the user's very personal data. The leaked data includes selfies, identity documents, and more than one million private messages.

The first violation was found on an open Firebase database and stored a selfie as well as an image of the user's identity. The data then spread across various image boards online. The second violation, revealed by cybersecurity researcher Kasra Rahjerdi and verified by 404 Media, revealed a different database containing the contents of Tea users' private conversations.

In these messages, users discuss sensitive topics such as abortion, infidelity, to personal information such as phone numbers and social media accounts. Although Tea claims to be an anonymous platform, the user's real identity is easily revealed through the contents of the conversation.

Responding to the first incident, Tea stated that the leaked data was outdated and did not affect active users. However, in the second violation, data was found sent in the same week as the disclosure of the violation.

After this news was published, Tea deactivated its direct messaging feature and stated it had started an internal investigation with an external cybersecurity firm. They also announced that the authorities had been involved.

Class Action Lawsuit And User Reaction

What makes the situation worsen, the leaked data is used by irresponsible parties to create face-level sites, where user photos are assessed and compared.

This adds psychological pressure to the victims. Ironically, the facial verification feature applied by Tea to ensure that only women who can access the application backfires due to this leak.

A woman from California, Griselda Reyes, sued Tea through a class action lawsuit, accusing the company of failing to protect users' personal data. The lawsuit filed by law firm Cole & Van Note, known for handling data leakage cases, states that this incident should have been prevented and that the victims were not given direct notification.

This lawsuit reflects the loss of security and trust from many women who previously saw Tea as a safe alternative in the world of digital dating. The legal firm also predicts that there will be more lawsuits against Tea in the near future.

Until this news was published, Tea was still available on the iOS App Store, even ranked first in the 'lifestyle' category and ranked fourth in the list of the most popular free apps.