Clubhouse Chats Get Breached as a Streams Audio Feeds From Multiple Rooms 4t284u Raising Security Concerns

Clubhouse says it’s “permanently banned” that particular and installed new “safeguards” to prevent a repeat. 6641j

By Jamie Tarabay and Kartikay Mehrotra, Bloomberg | Updated: 22 February 2021 10:20 IST

Clubhouse Chats Get Breached as a Streams Audio Feeds From Multiple Rooms, Raising Security Concerns

Clubhouse’s dependence on Agora raises extensive privacy concerns, especially for Chinese citizens 29473k

Highlights

Clubhouse relies on a Shanghai-based startup called Agora
Clubhouse is responsible for its experience
Clubhouse declined to explain what step it took to prevent similar breach

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A week after popular audio chatroom app Clubhouse said it was taking steps to ensure data couldn't be stolen by malicious hackers or spies, at least one attacker has proven the platform's live audio can be siphoned.

An unidentified was able to stream Clubhouse audio feeds this weekend from “multiple rooms” into their own third-party website, said Reema Bahnasy, a spokeswoman for Clubhouse. While the company says it's “permanently banned” that particular and installed new “safeguards” to prevent a repeat, researchers contend the platform may not be in a position to make such promises.

s of the invitation-only Facebook's former security chief.

Clubhouse Says Reviewing Data Protection Practices After Flaws Reported

Stamos and his team were also able to confirm that Clubhouse relies on a Shanghai-based startup called Agora to handle much of its back-end operations. While Clubhouse is responsible for its experience, like adding new friends and finding rooms, the platform relies on the Chinese company to process its data traffic and audio production, he said.

Clubhouse's dependence on Agora raises extensive privacy concerns, especially for Chinese citizens and dissidents under the impression their conversations are beyond the reach of state surveillance, Stamos said.

Agora said it couldn't comment on Clubhouse's security or privacy protocols and insisted it does not “store or share personally identifiable information” for any of its clients, of which Clubhouse is just one. “We are committed to making our products as secure as we can,” the company said.

How to Sign Up and Use Leher App — an Indian Alternative to Clubhouse

Over the weekend, cyber-security experts noticed that audio and metadata were being pulled from Clubhouse to another site. “A set up a way to remotely share his with the rest of the world,” said Robert Potter, Chief Executive Officer of Internet 2.0 based in Canberra, Australia. “The real problem was that folks thought these conversations were ever private.”

The culprit behind the weekend audio theft built their own system around the JavaScript toolkit used to compile the Clubhouse application. They effectively jury-rigged the platform, said Stamos. The SIO said it didn't determine the origin or identities of the attackers.

While Clubhouse declined to explain what steps it took to prevent a similar breach, solutions may include preventing the use of third-party applications to access chatroom audio without actually entering a room or simply limiting the number of rooms a can enter simultaneously, said Jack Cable, a researcher at the SIO.

A week ago, the SIO released a report saying it observed metadata from a Clubhouse chatroom “being relayed to servers we believe to be hosted” in China. Agora's obligations to China's cyber-security laws mean that it would be legally required to assist in locating audio should the government contend it jeopardised national security.

Clubhouse recently raised $100 million (roughly Rs. 725 crores) at a reported $1 billion (roughly Rs. 7,255 crores) valuation. Agora has soared more than 150 percent since mid-January. It is now worth close to $10 billion (roughly Rs. 72,550 crores).

In early February, s of Clubhouse in China said they were unable to access the app after an explosion of discussions by mainland s on taboo topics from Taiwan to Xinjiang. For now, it appears that s can still access the app by using virtual private networks, one of the few ways people in mainland China can explore the Internet beyond the Great Firewall.

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