As a free-to-use video chat service, it’s perhaps no surprise that Houseparty has rapidly grown in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic. The mobile app has struck a chord with teenagers and young adults in particular, allowing them to play games with friends and meet new people while stuck at home.
However, towards the end of March blamed Houseparty for a wave of hacks that supposedly exposed users’ Spotify, Snapchat and online banking data. However, there was no concrete evidence to back up these accusations.
Further claims were made of attempted and successful online purchases using card details and PayPal accounts without users’ consent. Fingers were pointed at the Houseparty app, which many people had downloaded for the first time only a few days later.
Was Houseparty ever really hacked?
To help set the record straight, we contacted the company to ask directly whether any of their systems had been compromised or user data leaked or used to gain access to other accounts or services. Within a day, a company spokesperson responded: “We’ve found no evidence to suggest a link between Houseparty and the compromises of other unrelated accounts.”
The company also published a number of tweets addressing the validity of the allegations, stating that their service had “never been compromised” and that Houseparty doesn’t collect passwords for other sites, either.
All Houseparty accounts are safe – the service is secure, has never been compromised, and doesn’t collect passwords for other sites.— Houseparty (@houseparty) March 30, 2020
The tweets proceeded to make mention of a potential “paid smear campaign” serving as the root cause of the hacking rumours and rather brazenly issued a $1M bounty to anyone who could name the source of said campaign and provide proof.
We are investigating indications that the recent hacking rumors were spread by a paid commercial smear campaign to harm Houseparty. We are offering a $1,000,000 bounty for the first individual to provide proof of such a campaign to bounty@houseparty.com.— Houseparty (@houseparty) March 31, 2020
The statement we were issued also highlighted a lack of credible sources in relation to the original accusatory tweets and social media posts against Houseparty. “Our investigation found that many of the original tweets spreading this claim [claims of hacking] have been deleted and we’ve noticed Twitter accounts suspended. It’s a disheartening situation for a service like ours that’s bringing people much needed face-to-face social connections and empathy at a critical time.”
With the origins of the hacking allegations apparently nonexistent or debunked, it seems fair to say that Houseparty’s servers were never compromised and user data was never at risk. That said, it’s still important to understand what user data Houseparty can store, utilise and share, based on its terms and conditions.
Is Houseparty secure?
While the app may be free to sign up to and use, UK-based data specialists, Reincubate, dug into Houseparty’s terms of service to see what it can legally do with anything you grant it access to.
While the offer of a million dollars is an enticing prospect in order to pin down the source of some bad publicity, it isn’t exactly a by-the-book solution, with Reincubate’s report suggesting that Houseparty should instead be encouraging the “discovery and resolution of real security problems”.
There’s also the matter of content ownership, with Houseparty claiming “free use for any purpose of user content sent through their [sic] system” – a markedly different stance compared to other similar services out there.
As for data security, while this time it seems user information remained private and protected, Houseparty’s own privacy policy absolves the company of any responsibility should data or content leak at a future point. Section 8 of the policy includes the lines, “we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you provide to us. We do not accept liability for unintentional disclosure.”
It seems that while Houseparty remains secure, its policies need to be brought in line with European data protection laws to better protect users going forward.
Houseparty and Fortnite Fortnite
In November 2020, Houseparty announced it was partnering up with Fortnite to add native video calling functionality within the popular Battle Royale game.
Squad up! You can now cast your Houseparty video chat directly into @FortniteGame! Join the party now to chat with your friends while they play. 👋 https://t.co/KCJJzT5aCk pic.twitter.com/id42CSXKFg— Houseparty (@houseparty) November 20, 2020
To get started, you’ll just need to play on PS4, PS5 or PC and connect the Houseparty app to your Epic Games account. If you had any concerns around downloading Houseparty to use with Fortnite, this article should go some way to reassuring you that it’s no less secure than any of the other video calling apps out there.
See more information in our dedicated article on how to video chat on Fortnite. For a more on the app itself, check out how to group video chat and play games on Houseparty.