Twitch Has Warned Its Users Of A Possible Security Breach.

A message from Twitch administrator’s to its user community was posted on the streaming service’s official blog yesterday, warning them of a security breach that may have compromised their passwords and accounts. The message reads:

We are writing to let you know that there may have been unauthorized access to some Twitch user account information.

For your protection, we have expired passwords and stream keys and have disconnected accounts from Twitter and YouTube. As a result, you will be prompted to create a new password the next time you attempt to log into your Twitch account.

We also recommend that you change your password at any website where you use the same or a similar password. We will communicate directly with affected users with additional details.

Sincerely, Twitch Staff

Following that, the blog was updated with a ‘best practices’ guide to creating a secure password, which was later updated to acknowledge many Twitch users’s request for slightly less stringent security requirements.

Concurrently, a copy of the e-mail sent directly to twitch users was acquired by Venturebeat. The e-mail details that the information in jeopardy includes e-mail addresses, names, phone numbers, home addresses and partial credit card information. The e-mail further specifies that the breach is believed to have occurred on March 3^rd.

The unfortunate news comes only a month after Twitch announced it’s very first Twitch-con, the company’s “first ever convention dedicated to Twitch’s community of partners, broadcasters, and viewers.”  The February announcement is a sure sign that the Amazon backed streaming service, launched barely four years ago, has become a monolithic presence in the gaming community. Twitch.tv boast that it has over one hundred million community members and over one and a half million broadcasters…that’s a lot of passwords to change.