technology

Grindr Got Hacked, Potentially Exposing Many, Many Men

Grindr iPhone ap
Photo: Grinde

The gay meet-up mobile app Grindr has reportedly been compromised by a Sydney, Australia-based hacker, who might now be in possession of more penis pictures than he (or she!) knows what to do with. The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the hacker’s ability to sign in as any user “has pushed the app developer into a security crisis that has left its users seriously vulnerable considering the vast amounts of private information traded through the app — in many cases naked photos.”

Grindr counts more than 1 million users worldwide, and the less popular straight version of the app, Blendr, seems to have the same hack-ready holes. A security expert described the “poorly designed” technology as having “no real security.”

The hacker kept a website, since taken down, displaying the accounts he accessed and demonstrating how he could change profile information, talk with other users, and view personal photos using others’ names, regardless of location. It might have failed for Anthony Weiner, but expect the next exposed politician to revert back to the age-old hacking defense. But I thought it was a weight-loss app!

Grindr Got Hacked, Potentially Exposing Many Men