Hackers have intercepted hundreds of thousands of Snapchat images and videos and leaked them online, Business Insider reports. 4chan users are already calling it as “The Snappening”, in reference to the recent hack that targeted over a hundred female celebrities.
Norweigian newspaper Dagbladet says that up to 200,000 images had been stolen. Many of the images are of teenagers and constitute child pornography. Half of all Snapchat users are between 13 and 17 years old.
Hackers were able to access the data via a third-party service that allowed users to hold onto photos and videos, which are otherwise automatically deleted by the official Snapchat app.
A source claims that hackers were able to intercept the images through SnapSaved.com, a now-defunct site that let users save Snapchats online. In the process, it stored the data (and the usernames of senders) on a server, which was then accessed and published online by hackers.
The database of stolen photos and videos first posted on viralpop.com, though the site is now offline. 4chan users who have downloaded the files are reported to be working on a database that allows people to search the Snapchats by username.
Dazed has reached out to Snapchat for comment.
(h/t Business Insider)
