The Clubhouse App has been rumored to be hacked, exposing the data of over 1.3 million users from the invite-only application. The hacked data from users reportedly includes names, user IDs, Twitter and Instagram handles and more. The said info were said to be shared in an online hacker forum.
For what it's worth, this news broke out days after data of half a billion Facebook were also hacked and leaked.
Clubhouse App User Profiles Hack
According to Cybernews, more than a million Clubhouse App user profiles were hacked, showing profile information on the SQL database. The leaked information about the app's users include User ID, Name, Photo URL, Username, Twitter Handle, Instagram Handle, Number of Followers, Number of people followed by the user, Account creation date and Invited by user profile name.
According to the news site, the Clubhouse App data leaks did not possess any sensitive information about its users, such as credit card/debit card information, legal documents and other stuff. However, the audio app's user names can still be targeted, as well as other social media platforms. It can be enough for a cybercriminal to cause hurt and hacking.
Also, determined cybercriminals can combine information found on the SQL database with other data breaches and use it to create detailed profiles of their potential victims, thus making a new account that can develop into an identity theft.
Clubhouse CEO Paul Davidson Speaks Out
Following the rumored Clubhouse App hack, the CEO of the drop-in audio application, Paul Davidson, addressed that the report from Cybernews is false and misleading and that it is a clickbait article. Davidson added that the app was not hacked, and the date referred to was all public profile information from their app, as The Verge shared.
Mashable also noted that while Davidson's statement could be true, it is still a breach of privacy from users since it shows their data can be collected and shared to others. The publication also pointed out questioned why all of the information is included in Clubhouse's API. Things like real names and the user's IDs of those invited to the app could be considered important enough to keep behind some digital lock.
Furthermore, it will be interesting how Clubhouse will handle this situation with its data security breach. If this could happen to Clubhouse, it may not take long for hackers to share personal information from Twitter or Facebook users.
Nope none of this is false, user data, even if publicly available, should never be consolidated and made available in one place where it will be abused. And the article never claimed you were breached or hacked, it stated that the information was only *posted* on a hacker forum.
— Ryan Zohoury (@RyanZohoury) April 11, 2021
Other Social Media Information Hacks
According to AppleInsider, there have been several hacks from the Clubhouse App throughout its one year of existence. In February 2021, it upgraded its security over concerns that bad actors in China could potentially spy on others.
The app was then hit by a regulator in Oman was eventually blocked. While the country stated that there is a permit issue, some critics expressed fear that it is a form of censorship.
