Dive Brief: 

• A security flaw in Snapchat's software was exploited on New Year's Eve when hackers posted the personal information of 4.6 million users on the site snapchatDB.info. 
• Snapchat had been warned of the hole by Australian hacking syndicate GibsonSec in private several months prior to the hack, but the group never heard back from Snapchat. 
• The hack is a blow to Snapchat's image, as part of its appeal is that users can send private photos that will disappear after 10 seconds.

Dive Insight: 

For an app that users are expecting to send private photos on, a hack like this can be detrimental to Snapchat's image. While no photos were exposed in this hack, only phone numbers, the idea has now been planted to users that the app can be hacked. Snapchat's failure to address the security flaw properly can be interpreted as the company not taking security seriously. If users lose their faith in the app's security, it could lose its valuable user base, which in turn could kill interest from potential investors.