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Introduction: When Trust Becomes the Target
Millions of people around the world use digital platforms to connect with communities, share personal information, and participate in activities they consider meaningful or private. But when these platforms fail to protect basic user data, even organizations built around trust and faith can become targets for cyber risks.
The
The incident highlights a growing problem across the technology industry: organizations of every size, mission, and background are now responsible for protecting user data. Cybersecurity is no longer only a concern for banks, governments, or technology companies. Any organization collecting personal information becomes a potential target and must operate with the same security standards expected from major digital platforms.
The
A Prayer App Built for Global Connection
Click to Pray is the official prayer application of the Vatican and the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network. The platform allows users across the globe to receive daily prayers, access religious content, and connect with a worldwide spiritual community.
The application is available through websites, Android devices, and iOS platforms. According to the organization, Click to Pray has reached users in almost every country, making it one of the Vatican’s most internationally connected digital services.
However, behind this global reach was a security weakness that potentially exposed hundreds of thousands of users.
Security Researcher Discovers Critical API Vulnerability
The IDOR Flaw That Opened the Door
In January, security researcher BobDaHacker discovered an Insecure Direct Object Reference (IDOR) vulnerability affecting the Click to Pray website.
IDOR vulnerabilities occur when an application directly exposes internal identifiers, such as user IDs, without properly verifying whether someone has permission to access the requested information.
In this case, the problem was simple but dangerous.
The platform assigned sequential user IDs to accounts after registration. However, an API endpoint allowed anyone to enter those numbers and retrieve information connected to other accounts without authentication or authorization.
This meant that an attacker did not need advanced hacking skills. A normal browser request could potentially reveal private information belonging to thousands of users.
More Than 700,000 Accounts Potentially Exposed
What Information Was Leaked?
The exposed API reportedly revealed:
User first and last names
Email addresses
Country information
Account deletion status
User roles
Administrative privileges
The information was displayed in plain text, meaning attackers could easily collect and organize the data.
The lowest user IDs appeared to belong to staff and administrative accounts connected to the organization. Other accounts were assigned the default role of “PRAYER.”
The leak created a serious risk because attackers could identify not only regular users but also internal accounts.
Deep Analysis: How the IDOR Vulnerability Worked
Understanding the Technical Failure
The vulnerability existed because the application checked whether a request was properly formatted but failed to verify whether the person making the request had permission to access that specific user’s information.
A secure application should perform two separate checks:
Authentication:
Who are you?
Authorization:
Are you allowed to access this data?
Many developers correctly implement authentication but forget authorization controls.
Example of Vulnerable API Behavior
A vulnerable endpoint might look similar to:
GET https://example.com/api/users/12345
The server should verify ownership:
if requesting_user != target_user: deny_access()
But a vulnerable system may simply return:
{
"id":12345,
"name":"User Name",
"email":"[email protected]"
}
without checking permissions.
Testing for IDOR Vulnerabilities
Security researchers often test applications using simple requests:
curl https://target.com/api/profile/1001
Then changing the identifier:
curl https://target.com/api/profile/1002
If different
Automated Data Collection Risk
An attacker could create a simple script:
Run import requests
for user_id in range(1,700000):
response=requests.get(
f"https://target.com/api/users/{user_id}"
)
if response.status_code == 200: print(response.text)
A vulnerability that appears small can quickly become a large-scale data breach when automated.
How Attackers Could Exploit the Leaked Data
Phishing Campaigns Using Trust as a Weapon
The biggest danger from this incident is not only the leaked information itself.
Attackers could use the stolen data to create highly convincing phishing messages.
A criminal could send emails pretending to represent the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network:
Your prayer account requires verification.
Because the attacker already knows the
Faith-Based Social Engineering Risks
Cybercriminals often exploit emotional connections.
Religious communities are built around trust, compassion, and communication. Unfortunately, those same qualities can be manipulated by attackers.
Possible abuse scenarios include:
Fake donation requests
Fraudulent religious newsletters
Malware disguised as spiritual content
Fake account recovery messages
Identity theft attempts
Why This Incident Matters Beyond the Vatican
Cybersecurity Is
Many organizations still believe cybersecurity belongs only to technology companies.
That mindset is outdated.
Any organization collecting:
Names
Emails
Personal information
User accounts
is now a data custodian.
Whether it is a church, charity, school, nonprofit, or government agency, protecting user information is a fundamental responsibility.
The Hidden Challenge for Non-Technical Organizations
Good Intentions Do Not Replace Security
Religious institutions and nonprofit organizations often focus heavily on their mission while cybersecurity receives less attention.
The problem is that attackers do not care about an organization’s purpose.
A nonprofit database can be just as valuable as a corporate database.
Personal information has financial value, and cybercriminals search everywhere for opportunities.
Vatican Data Protection Rules Face a Real-World Test
Regulations Alone Cannot Prevent Breaches
The Vatican introduced its own personal data protection regulation in 2024, including requirements for security measures, risk analysis, and incident reporting.
However, written policies are only effective when they are properly implemented.
A security document cannot protect users if developers fail to:
Review APIs
Test access controls
Perform security audits
Monitor vulnerabilities
Cybersecurity requires continuous action.
Protecting Yourself When Using Online Applications
Reduce the Amount of Data You Share
Users can reduce their exposure by limiting unnecessary personal information.
Security researchers recommend:
Avoid using full names when unnecessary
Use privacy-focused email options
Enable multi-factor authentication
Avoid reusing passwords
Review account permissions regularly
Privacy Features Can Reduce Damage
Some Click to Pray users benefited from privacy tools such as Apple’s Hide My Email feature.
Instead of providing a real email address, users can create a relay address that forwards messages privately.
This limits the damage if a company database is exposed.
What Developers Must Learn From This Breach
Authentication Is Not Enough
Modern applications require security thinking at every stage of development.
Developers should implement:
Server-side authorization checks
Role-based access control
API security testing
Regular penetration testing
Automated vulnerability scanning
A logged-in user should never automatically have access to every resource.
What Undercode Say:
The Vatican Leak Shows That Cybersecurity Is Now a Universal Responsibility
The Click to Pray incident is not simply another API mistake.
It represents a much larger cybersecurity reality.
Every organization is becoming a technology company.
A religious platform, a charity application, or a community website can collect hundreds of thousands of personal records.
The size of an organization no longer determines its attractiveness to attackers.
Data itself is the target.
The IDOR vulnerability discovered in Click to Pray is one of the oldest security problems in web development.
Yet it continues appearing in major platforms.
The reason is simple.
Many development teams focus on building features quickly but underestimate authorization security.
Creating a login system is easier than creating a secure permission system.
Many frameworks handle authentication automatically, but authorization remains the developer’s responsibility.
That small difference creates massive security failures.
The incident also demonstrates how attackers do not always need sophisticated malware.
Sometimes the biggest breaches happen through simple mistakes.
A missing security check can expose hundreds of thousands of records.
Organizations often invest in advanced cybersecurity tools while ignoring basic protections.
A firewall cannot fix a broken API.
Artificial intelligence cannot replace proper security design.
The first security layer must always be strong engineering practices.
Another important lesson is that trust creates responsibility.
Users trusted Click to Pray with their information because of the reputation behind the platform.
When users share data with a respected institution, they expect stronger protection.
Cybersecurity failures damage more than databases.
They damage confidence.
The future will require nonprofits, religious organizations, and small companies to adopt professional security standards.
Security teams do not need to be massive.
Even basic actions can prevent major incidents:
Regular security reviews
Responsible disclosure programs
API testing
Access control verification
Employee security training
The cybersecurity industry has repeatedly warned about IDOR vulnerabilities.
OWASP has listed broken access control as one of the most serious web security risks for years.
Yet organizations continue repeating the same mistakes.
The solution is not only better technology.
It is a stronger security culture.
Every developer should think:
Should this person see this data?
not only:
Is this person logged in?
That difference separates secure systems from vulnerable ones.
The Click to Pray breach should remind every organization that digital responsibility comes with digital growth.
A mission-driven organization is still a technology provider when it manages user data.
Security must become part of the mission itself.
Prediction
(+1) Stronger Security Awareness Will Grow After High-Profile Nonprofit Breaches 🔐
This incident will likely encourage more religious organizations, charities, and nonprofit platforms to invest in cybersecurity.
Organizations that previously considered security a secondary concern may begin adopting:
Security audits
External penetration testing
Better API controls
Privacy-focused development practices
(+1) Users Will Demand More Transparency From Digital Platforms 🌍
As more data leaks become public, users will increasingly evaluate platforms based on privacy protection.
Companies and organizations that demonstrate strong security practices will gain more trust.
(-1) Smaller Organizations May Continue Struggling With Security Resources ⚠️
Many nonprofits still lack cybersecurity budgets and dedicated security teams.
Without external support, similar vulnerabilities may continue appearing across smaller digital platforms.
✅ Confirmed: Click to Pray was reported to have an exposed API vulnerability allowing access to user information without proper authorization.
✅ Confirmed: The vulnerability involved an IDOR-style security issue, a common broken access control problem listed among major web security risks.
❌ Not Confirmed: There is no public evidence that attackers successfully exploited the vulnerability for criminal activity or that stolen data was sold online.
The incident remains a serious exposure because publicly accessible personal information can create future phishing and identity risks even without confirmed abuse.
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References:
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