The Tea app, aiming to provide a safe female-only space, experienced a severe data breach exposing over 72,000 user IDs, selfies, and private messages. The app required users to upload a government-issued ID and a selfie for verification, intended to filter out non-women and fake accounts. However, a lack of security measures—such as passwords and encryption—led to hackers accessing unsecured databases. The leaked data, amounting to 59.3 GB, included alarming personal information dating back to 2024 and 2025, contradicting the company’s claims about the breach involving only outdated data. Developers referred to the issue as a result of 'vibe coding,' where developers rely on AI tools without proper security reviews, resulting in many security flaws. Users are now at risk of having personal information mapped and searchable online. Some experts warn that the over-reliance on generative AI in coding has increased security vulnerabilities, exemplified by this breach, prompting users to consider credit monitoring to mitigate potential damage.

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