Kardashian-Jenner Sisters' New Websites Have a Massive Security FlawNearly 900,000 users' data was exposed.

ByRobert Hackett

This story originally appeared onFortune Magazine

Trying to keep your Kardashian obsession under wraps?

If you're one of the super-fans who quickly subscribed to one of the Kardashian or Jenner sisters' newly launched websites, which arrived alongside $2.99-per-month mobile apps, then we've got some bad news. You may have inadvertently given yourself away.

A flaw in the design of the sister sites has reportedly exposed the personal information—including first and last names as well as email addresses—of 891,240 users.

A 19-year-old developer by the name of Alaxic Smith discovered the security issue and wrote about his findings on Medium, the publishing platform, earlier this week. (Soon after taking his results public, he removed the post. You can read an archived version of the articlethrough this cached Google web page here.)

In a nutshell, Smith poked around the site until he eventually discovered an unsecure API—application programming interface, a kind of computer code that allows third parties to use proprietary data—containing users' partial login information. "Initially, I thought that this was some page filled with dummy data, but as I started to look closer, I realized it wasn't," he wrote. "I now had access to the first names, last names, and email addresses of the 663,270 people who signed up for Kylie Jenner's website."

It didn't take long for Smith to test the same trick across each website. And it worked each time.

The sites, crafted byWhalerock Industries, a software development firm, all bore the same vulnerability. So what affectedthekyliejenner.comequally impactedkimkardashianwest.com,khloewithak.com, andkendallj.com. (At the time of publication,kourtneykardashian.comhas yet to debut.)

Worse still? Smith discovered that he could manipulate data on each site. "I also had the ability to create/destroy users, photos, videos, and more," he wrote.

Whalerock has since patched the computer bugs. The companyreleased a statementabout the flub to the tech news site TechCrunch on Wednesday.

发射后不久我们提醒佤邦s an open Api. It was promptly closed. Our logs indicate that the author of the blog post was able to access only a limited set of names and email addresses. Our logs further indicate no one else had access and that no passwords nor payment data of any kind was exposed. Our highest priority is the security of our customers' data.

An interesting corollary to the security issue involves the inferred popularity of each high-profile celebrity, as gleaned from the data Smith was able to collect regarding new user enrollments. (Caveats:Fortunehas no way of verifying the legitimacy of this information, let alone confirming that it is the complete.)

According to the data, Kylie Jenner wins by a mile—though we already suspected that might be the case. Her star has risen precipitously in the past year or so.

Earlier this summer, hackers leaked user databases from the infidelity site Ashley Madison. The data dumps threatened to expose the identities of presumably philanderous spouses, leading to extortion schemes, potential divorces, even alleged suicides. To be sure, the Kardashian-Jenner website gaffe is a far less grave situation.

The Kim Kardashian West website's tagline is "unlock my world." Guess it didn't take much to do so.

Wavy Line

Robert Hackett is a writer atFortune, writing frequently about technology.

Editor's Pick

Related Topics

Data & Recovery

Get 1TB of Cloud Storage for Life for $119.97 With This Back-to-School Sale

This 1TB Cloud Storage Solution Is Only $119.97 for Back to School

Business News

Kevin O'Leary Slams Anheuser-Busch CEO's Listening Tour, Says It Won't Stop Bud Light Backlash for One Huge Reason

Anheuser-Busch U.S. CEO Brendan Whitworth announced plans to hear consumers out this summer.

Money & Finance

Want to Become a Millionaire? Follow Warren Buffett's 4 Rules.

企业家是不能过度指狗万官方望太多a company exit for their eventual 'win.' Do this instead.

Business News

Netflix is Hiring an AI-Focused Role—and the Starting Salary is up to $900,000

The streaming giant is looking for a leader in its machine learning department.

Business News

Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard's Family 'Stranded' at Boston Airport During 9-Hour Delay: 'We Made Quite a Home Here'

The actors spent $600 on pillows and blankets while waiting for their flight.