Mastodawn

ICYMI: A viral app called Neon, which pays you to record your phone calls so your audio can be used to train AI, has gone offline after I discovered a security lapse exposing users' phone numbers, call recordings, and call transcriptions.

Anyone could download users' raw audio recordings because the web links were publicly accessible from the web.

https://techcrunch.com/2025/09/25/viral-call-recording-app-neon-goes-dark-after-exposing-users-phone-numbers-call-recordings-and-transcripts/

Exclusive: Neon takes down app after exposing users' phone numbers, call recordings, and transcripts

Call recording app Neon was one of the top-ranked iPhone apps, but was pulled offline after a security bug allowed any logged-in user to access the call recordings and transcripts of any other user.

TechCrunch

Timothy Wolodzko Sep 26

@zackwhittaker who could think it may be a bad idea, right?

aburka 🫣Sep 26

@zackwhittaker this is sort of hilarious but also if you took that money you are an inconsiderate (and possibly criminal depending on the state) moron so kinda hard to feel bad

GrumpyDad 🇺🇦🇵🇸Sep 26

@zackwhittaker lol. Any chance it was vibe coded?

@zackwhittaker The stupidity of the people really knows no bounds.

And thank you for protecting even those who do not deserve it 😉

@zackwhittaker Crazy that people actually did this. Sure...go ahead...sign your life away for a few bucks, maybe a discount. It's worth it, right? Nope!

Joe Alexander Sep 26

@Nobodyknows789 @zackwhittaker People are literally starving.

@zackwhittaker Okay but this doesn't even sound like an app that ever should've been a thing in the first place. I'm glad it's gone, but also WTF

Crovanian Sep 26

@zackwhittaker huh, that’s not good. I think. That’s not good, is it, guys?

Yomen Tohmaz Sep 26

@zackwhittaker Oh I had a small panic attack after reading the headline. I Neon for my website, which is a database management software.

@bluebird_teaching @zackwhittaker kde users too

ᛋᛁᚵᛁᛋᛘᚢᚾᛑ ᚾᛁᚾᛃᛅ Sep 26

@zackwhittaker vibe coders feeling the vibe?

@zackwhittaker speed running the data collection to data breach process. I only heard about neon yesterday.

Sean O'Brien Sep 26

@zackwhittaker GREAT work as usual

max oakland Sep 26

Why is this so common? Vibe coding?

Pete Alex Harris🦡🕸️🌲/∞🪐∫Sep 26

@maxoakland
Here's a wild theory.

Suppose you have a commercial idea for deeply invasive data collection, but you want to actually monetise the data somewhat outside the lines of what you have consent to do or maybe the law.

Simple. Start a fake company to collect the data, make the security of their database deniably shit. Get "hacked", have your real company use the data for whatever you like.

@zackwhittaker "pays you to record your phone calls so your audio can be used to train AI"

I cannot fathom the degree of thoughtlessness that would lead someone to think "Why, sure, what've I got to lose?".

@zackwhittaker nice one! great work! sadly this reminds me awfully about the video ident you need todo in germany if you want to activate a prepaid sim card by certain providers...
they are forced to ask if you are okay to have the call recorded, BUT you cant decline! if you do they end the call and don't unlock the damn thing. -.-

SpaceLifeForm Sep 26

I was not aware of its existence until your report.

It was an amazing stupid user trick.

@zackwhittaker holy crap. also, don't do this!!

Michael Ginsburg - Actionable Truth Media Sep 26

Stupidity has its 'rewards'...