API Misuse: Hacker Leaks 2.6M Duolingo Users' Emails & Names

breadsmasher , 10 months ago

Surely allowing access to this personal data via a public API is a data breach? Its just taking it from something that shouldnt have exposed it rather than hacking into a system

towerful , 10 months ago

Yeh.
Same as if it was a CSV mailing list on an unprotected URL or whatever.
The term “data breach” suggests there was security there to be breeched. Maybe it needs a better term?

unscholarly_source , 10 months ago

Data leak? In the security field, they categorize it as “information disclosure”… But it doesn’t have the same level of gravitas to it

lando55 , 10 months ago

It does if you consider it from the point of view of a. Someone went out of their way to design this API so as to allow this or b. A team of individuals deployed it without realizing how it would be exploited

You can generally learn things from a breach, but finding and remediating systemic issues like those mentioned above is a big ask

Edit: I either responded to the wrong comment or misunderstood what you said. It’s late in the day…

unscholarly_source , 10 months ago

I think you replied to the right post (mine) but I didn’t downvote you.

Information disclosure doesn’t necessarily imply it’s intentional or unintentional, just that information was disclosed. But in a sense I do agree somewhat with that you said, only that WHO the person who developed the API receives that message from makes a huge difference. The IT security team coming to you and says “information disclosure” is scarier than a team mate

lando55 , 10 months ago

Oh I wish that were true but unless GRC or Legal get involved nothing much comes of it lol

db2 , 10 months ago

We have investigated this unintended information disclosure and have concluded it’s the fault of the users for having information.

unscholarly_source , 10 months ago

Carries the same weight as “Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly”. It’s the fault of those little green men in kerbal space program.