Twitch Was Hacked, Information & Source Code Leaked, Including Creator Payouts

At the beginning of October, the popular streaming platform Twitch suffered a massive data leak. The breaking news announced by major outlets like BBC News and Video Games Chronicle caught many content creators by surprise and fearing for their channels’ safety and personal information. Twitch’s online video streaming space is made of over 30 million daily users, and over 2.5 million people watch streams during any moment of the day. So, when events like this occur, it’s understandable that streamers start to worry. Why and how was Twitch hacked, and how can you protect your channel from illegal hacks? Start reading to find out!

And when you’re finished, take a look at our other Twitch guides:

Why And How Did The Twitch Data Leak Happen?

At the beginning of this month, an anonymous hacker took it to the popular 4chan message board to announce that they’ve hacked an enormous streaming platform – Twitch. According to initial cybersecurity news, whoever did the hack, released confidential information about users, including login credentials, the entire source code, internal tools of the Amazon-owned streaming platform, details about their clients, and much more.

The 4chan original message by an anonymous user rated the Twitch leak as extremely poggers, explaining that the Twitter community is a toxic cesspool, and it has to be disrupted. This comes after users have been unhappy with how Twitch handles hate raids for a while, asking other streamers to boycott the service for 24 hours. Shortly after this happened, Twitch announced they were trying to fix the hate problem; however, it’s not a simple process, and it will take time.

All the breach information is packed in a 128GB torrent anyone can download and skim through. The anonymous source also decided to release the details of creator payouts for some of the most popular streamers on the platform. You can see how much your favorite streamer made in 2019 and follow their example to grow your channel by accessing the file.

Shortly after the Twitch hack was all over the news, Twitch representatives confirmed that the platform was attacked and that this is, unfortunately, the biggest leak to ever happen to it. Twitch wrote the error to an improper server configuration change, allowing an outsider to access the source code, creator payout reports, company tools, internal services used by Twitch, clients, and much more. However, they assure their users that information such as passwords or credit card details is safe and untouched.

The hacker ended his message saying that thanks to him, the world can get what Jeff Bezos paid millions of dollars for, for free. As reported by the anonymous hacker, the massive data breach will be released in two parts, and this is just the beginning of what he’ll be revealing online for everyone to see.

According to Ekram Ahmed, a spokesperson for a cybersecurity company, no breach is good, regardless of how big or small it is. The specialist says that this Twitch data leak might cause cracks in the security foundation of the streaming service, inspiring other hackers to try and find ways to get inside valuable information. After the hack, the live-streaming platform updated its privacy policy and let its users know via a Privacy Notice. You can check it out and see how Twitch can use your information.

How Can You Protect Yourself From Getting Your Twitch Hacked?

How can Twitch streamers upgrade their security to ensure that the channel they worked so hard on is safe? The first thing you should do is change your password and activate the two-factor authentication. This feature will add a layer of protection, ensuring that you’re the first one to know if your password is ever compromised. When it is, you’ll receive a notification, an SMS, or a request from Twitch to use an authenticator app to access your profile. If you’re not the one trying to access it, you’ll know that someone else tried so that you can act fast.

Before turning on the two-factor authentication, you need to verify your Twitch account. After you receive the verification email, you can enable the feature and choose an authentication method. It can be an SMS on your mobile phone or an authenticator app where you can scan a QR code sent to you after you try logging in.

Now that the popular game streaming service has done everything on their part to amp up the internal security tools, you can feel safe once again entering your email address and Twitch password. If you love online video game streaming and have excellent Twitch stream ideas, you should dedicate your time to creating quality content and monetizing your channel. Twitch growth doesn’t happen overnight; however, if you work hard and find an excellent organic growth service as a helping hand, you can expect amazing results.

Conclusion

After the source code leak, many Twitch users became suspicious of whether the service is responsible enough to keep their information protected and whether they should keep streaming. Thankfully, there have been no new hacks, and the platform ensures its streamers that it’s 100% safe and all their information is well protected and kept secret from the public. You can do your part of the job by changing your old password and turning on the two-factor authentication.