×
GreekEnglish

×
  • Politics
  • Diaspora
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Cooking
Sunday
01
Feb 2026
weather symbol
Athens 14°C
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • World
  • Diaspora
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Culture
  • Sports
  • Mediterranean Cooking
  • Weather
Contact follow Protothema:
Powered by Cloudevo
> World

Millions of Instagram celebrities and influencers had their personal data leaked online

The database was left exposed and without a password allowing anyone to look inside

Newsroom May 22 10:38

A massive database hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS) for Mumbai-based internet company Chtrbox that contained contact info for millions of Instagram accounts for influencers, celebrities and brands has been discovered leaked online.

The database, hosted by Amazon Web Services, was left exposed and without a password allowing anyone to look inside,” writes Zack Whittaker at TechCrunch.

At the time of his report, the database had over 49 million records, and was “growing by the hour.”

From TechCrunch 

From a brief review of the data, each record contained public data scraped from influencer Instagram accounts, including their bio, profile picture, the number of followers they have, if they’re verified and their location by city and country, but also contained their private contact information, such as the Instagram account owner’s email address and phone number.

Security researcher Anurag Sen discovered the database and alerted TechCrunch in an effort to find the owner and get the database secured. We traced the database back to Mumbai-based social media marketing firm Chtrbox, which pays influencers to post sponsored content on their accounts. Each record in the database contained a record that calculated the worth of each account, based off the number of followers, engagement, reach, likes and shares they had. This was used as a metric to determine how much the company could pay an Instagram celebrity or influencer to post an ad.

>Related articles

Wills online – All the changes in inheritances through the digital platform diathikes.gr – The multiple benefits

The White House officially confirms that COVID came from a lab and accuses Fauci of a deliberate cover-up

Greek influencers become sex slaves in Dubai – Friday’s fares and flights from Athens

TechCrunch found several high-profile influencers in the exposed database, including prominent food bloggers, celebrities and other social media influencers.

We contacted several people at random whose information was found in the database and provided them their phone numbers. Two of the people responded and confirmed their email address and phone number found in the database was used to set up their Instagram accounts. Neither had any involvement with Chtrbox, they said.

Shortly after we reached out, Chtrbox pulled the database offline. Pranay Swarup, the company’s founder and chief executive, did not respond to a request for comment and several questions, including how the company obtained private Instagram account email addresses and phone numbers.

Ask me anything

Explore related questions

#celebrities#data breach#influencers#instagram#leak#online
> More World

Follow en.protothema.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news

See all the latest News from Greece and the World, the moment they happen, at en.protothema.gr

> Latest Stories

Tomorrow, Mitsotakis’ address on constitutional revision will propose changes to 70 of the 120 articles

February 1, 2026

Agiokampos flooded in Larissa: Roads and sea became one (videos)

February 1, 2026

Searches at “Violanta” factory temporarily halted due to risk of new explosion

February 1, 2026

Greek Interior Minister: We are preparing electronic voting for the 2028 local government elections

February 1, 2026

Time of decisions for Iran: Tehran speaks of a “framework for dialogue,” as Trump’s “armada” is within firing range

February 1, 2026

Crew abandonment a scourge: Record in 2025 with 6,223 sailors and the “shadow fleet” in focus

February 1, 2026

First wave of weather deterioration underway: Seven regions on Red Code and a barrage of 112 alerts

February 1, 2026

No more virtual invoices: Real-time VAT monitoring is coming

February 1, 2026
All News

> Lifestyle

Jessie J: ‘Cancer was the harshest thing my breasts ever had to endure’

The singer spoke with humor and honesty about her diagnosis, mastectomy, and the shift in perspective the illness brought

January 30, 2026

Celia Kritharioti: Her new collection was presented at Paris Fashion Week with an “Old Hollywood” feel

January 29, 2026

Eurovision 2026: Greece climbs to third place in predictions

January 28, 2026

Athina Onassis makes rare public appearance at Paris Haute Couture week

January 28, 2026

Paul Newman in a rare, unpublished photo from his visit to Athens in 1962

January 27, 2026
Homepage
PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION POLICY COOKIES POLICY TERM OF USE
Powered by Cloudevo
Copyright © 2026 Πρώτο Θέμα