Twitch Source Code Leaked

The live streaming service, Twitch, a subsidiary of Amazon, had it’s source code leaked. This exposed various confidential information, including some company plans and payment data from popular accounts on the platform.

Twitch is a popular live streaming platform that broadcasts eSports, live music and other events to audiences that have climbed to millions at a time.

A 125-gigabyte torrent file that hackers alleged included all of Twitch’s code, including information about internal security tools, a few years of payment history to Twitch ‘creators’ and information related to proprietary software. The anonymous user who posted it stated the goal was to disrupt the competition in the online video streaming space.

In a statement, Twitch confirmed a breach had occurred. “Our teams are working with urgency to understand the extent of this,” a spokesperson said in an email. “We will update the community as soon as additional information is available. Thank you for bearing with us.”

Twitch streamers earn revenue from a variety of methods. From enlisting followers in paid subscriptions and earning sponsorships from video game brands, to generating ad revenue from the company itself. Because of the high-profile nature of their work, with some accounts having more than 10 million followers, makes them prone to hackers and attackers.

The incident is just the latest headache for the Twitch team. They recently announced they created verification tools aimed at combating harassment on the site after viewers reported abuse on streamers, particularly creators from minority communities. They are promising to do better and add better protections for all users.