Bykea app ‘compromised’ as users receive ‘inappropriate’ messages

• Bykea blames third-party communication tool for the mishap.
• “We apologise for inappropriate messages sent through Bykea.”
• The company also claims that the app has been restored. 

Bykea, the ride-hailing, mobility, and delivery app — used by several Pakistanis in different cities — was reported to have been hacked Tuesday after users started receiving highly inappropriate text messages from the app.

“We apologise for the inappropriate messages sent through Bykea. We can confirm that this was a third party communication tool which got compromised,” the company said in a statement.

The company also claimed to have restored the app, which it said was now “fully functional and safe to use”.

“If users are facing any issues, they can reach us through our helpline,” the statement mentioned.

Bykea Chief Operating Officer (COO) Rafiq Malik told Geo.tv over WhatsApp that the company was “further investigating” with the vendor on how they “accessed” the API.

“Tokens have been changed, and APIs have been disabled for now. The app is safe to use,” the official said.

According to its Facebook page, Bykea is available in Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, and Wah.

The COO said that around 100,000 people use the app every day — which has five million plus downloads on Google Play Store.