How software engineer exposed privacy flaw in Kardashian clan's new sites that leaves more than 800,000 users' private data open to hackers (...and you'll never guess whose site is most popular)

  • The Kardashians launched apps with credit card subscription on Monday 
  • Alaxic Smith, a teenage developer, researched what powered the sites
  • He discovered the API was left open and he could access all personal data
  • The hack also revealed Kylie Jenner has thousands more fans than Kim
  • Smith was allegedly forced to delete his post after notifying the clan

By Mia De Graaf For Dailymail.com

Published: 18:17 EST, 17 September 2015 | Updated: 21:45 EST, 17 September 2015

A web developer has exposed thousands of exposed a privacy flaw in the Kardashians’ new collection of apps and websites that leaves more than 890,000 fans’ personal data open to hackers.

Alaxic Smith published a blog post – which has since been deleted – with screengrabs showing how he accidentally came across names and email addresses of subscribers.

Beyond the security concerns, his foray into the Kardashian cyberworld, powered by Whalerock Digital Media, also revealed Kylie Jenner’s site is by far the most popular.

Software engineer Alaxic Smith explored what powered the Kardashians' new pay-for-subscription sites and just using basic code he was confronted with the private information of 890,000 fans (redacted screengrab)

Software engineer Alaxic Smith explored what powered the Kardashians' new pay-for-subscription sites and just using basic code he was confronted with the private information of 890,000 fans (redacted screengrab)

Launch: The siblings launched four of their five sites in New York on Monday at the Soho Apple store

Launch: The siblings launched four of their five sites in New York on Monday at the Soho Apple store

Smith, a teenage designer and engineer, wrote that he had finished a day of work on Monday when he heard the news that the Kardashian-Jenner family had launched a set of websites and apps with a pay-for-subscription service.

As he tried to work out what powered the incredibly popular sites, he found the API was open. In other words, he could put some basic code into his browser, and when he logged in was presented with streams of personal data.

‘I’ll admit it, I downloaded Kylie’s app just to check it out,’ he said in the blog post on Medium, which is now deleted but still available as a cached version.

‘I also checked out the website, and just like most developers, I decided to take a look around to see what was powering the site. I started digging a little bit deeper and found a JavaScript file named kylie.min.75c4ceae105ad8689f88270895e77cb0_gz.js.

‘Just for fun, I decided to un-minify this file to see what kind of data they were collecting from users and other metrics they may be tracking.’ 

Astonishingly, his digging exposed 891,340 subscribers’ information. 

The stats showed that 663,270 of those users subscribed to Kylie Jenner’s personal site. 

The data also revealed Kylie Jenner's site is far more popular than the other sisters', followed by Khloe

The data also revealed Kylie Jenner's site is far more popular than the other sisters', followed by Khloe

Revealing: Kim's youngest half-sister Kylie Jenner's website features her favourite boots, snaps from her Sasha Samsonova photoshoot and an intriguing section titled 'Kylie comes clean: They're real'

Revealing: Kim's youngest half-sister Kylie Jenner's website features her favourite boots, snaps from her Sasha Samsonova photoshoot and an intriguing section titled 'Kylie comes clean: They're real'

Kim is asking fans to pay an introductory subscription of $2.99 per month after a free seven-day trial

Kim is asking fans to pay an introductory subscription of $2.99 per month after a free seven-day trial

The lowdown: Khloe, 31, reveals her favourite gym workout clothes, her style tips including 'army green is the new black' and how she transformed from sultry brunette to blonde bombshell

The lowdown: Khloe, 31, reveals her favourite gym workout clothes, her style tips including 'army green is the new black' and how she transformed from sultry brunette to blonde bombshell

Ruling the runways: Kendall gives her fans a glimpse into her life as a high-fashion runway model

Ruling the runways: Kendall gives her fans a glimpse into her life as a high-fashion runway model

The second most popular sister is Khloe Kardashian, with 96,635 users. 

Kim, often seen as the star of the clan, has 80,679 subscribers according to the data. 

And Kendall had 50,756. 

Kourtney's site is not yet live. 

Smith has a theory about Kylie’s success as he reflects on the data. ‘Millennials want to be closer to their favorite people, artists, athletes and more than ever. There’s no coincidence that Kylie had ~828% more signups than Kim,’ he writes.

On a more serious note he writes that he reached out to Whalerock to make them aware of the issue, and remarked: 'It’s clear why this is a major issue, and raises the question: should users trust not only their personal information but also payment information with these apps?'

According to Motherboard, Smith was forced to delete his blog post and has been barred from speaking to the media. 

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