Sensitive location data of millions of users of popular apps such as Vinted, Spotify, Candy Crush, and Tinder has been stolen by an unknown hacker. According to a report by The I Paper, the hacker has posted the details on a Russian-language site that is popular among cyber-criminals. This is being considered a major international data breach. It is believed that the hackers have targeted US company Gravy Analytics (GA) which brokers location data for thousands of popular apps.

Users may be blackmailed.

It is estimated that about 20 million people in the UK may have used at least one of the hacked apps. However, it is not known how many people's location data may have been stolen. Experts fear that this stolen data will make it easier for criminals to scam individuals or potentially blackmail them.

Many companies collect the location of customers when they use their apps. This data is then sold directly or indirectly to a company like GA, which will sell this data to someone else such as hedge funds, insurance firms, or government agencies. This breach presents a new level of risk to personal privacy. Because the hack could potentially reveal not only the movements of individuals or their shopping and gaming habits but also the identities of people targeted by government and law enforcement agencies.

Cybersecurity professor Alan Woodward said: 'It's the loss of privacy that should be the biggest concern. You can see how location history or recent locations could be a great way to socially engineer someone into a scam for further unauthorized access.'

The US has censored it.

GA has been censored by US authorities for illegally tracking and selling sensitive location data from users, including data about consumers' health-related locations and visits to places of worship. As well as posting location details of millions of users, the hacker also provided details of more than 10,000 apps from where the location data originated. It listed Vinted, Spotify, Candy Crush, and dating app Tinder as examples.

A spokesperson for Vinted, one of the world's most popular online marketplaces with 16 million users in the UK, said that while it has no direct partnership with GA, customers are likely to be affected.

They said: 'We are taking this matter seriously, as the safety of our members is a top priority. We are actively investigating the situation to determine whether our platform or members have been affected, including any potential indirect impact through third parties. At this time, we do not have enough information to confirm any connection or impact.'

Tinder confirmed that they are also investigating the claims but denied having a direct relationship with GA. One of their spokespersons said, 'Tinder takes safety and security very seriously. We have no relationship with Gravy Analytics and we have no evidence that this data was obtained from the Tinder app.' Meanwhile, a Spotify spokesperson said, 'This hack does not involve Spotify user data.'

Disclaimer: This content has been sourced and edited from Dainik Jagran. While we have made modifications for clarity and presentation, the original content belongs to its respective authors and website. We do not claim ownership of the content.