Re:Personal information and ads on Twitter
by danShumway on Tuesday October 08, 2019 @07:15PM
(#21198312)
I have two objections to this.
First, I disagree that only high-value targets are at risk. I think, in general, targets are at risk for SIM-jacking. You can be a target because you're Jack Dorsey, but you can also be a target because you suddenly get swept up in a Twitter controversy, or because you run a corporate social media account, or because an ex-partner decides they want revenge over something.
A lot of our security protects against untargeted attacks because they're more common, but targeted attacks can't be completely ignored.
The second problem I have is that high-value targets use Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon, and they should be able to use these sites without worrying that their accounts are by-default insecure. We're not talking about a local library account, these are the biggest tech companies in the world. The president of the United States uses Twitter.
I think that taking a strong stance on security is important in that scenario.
I'm assuming (hoping) that Trump's account is secured with a phone-number that isn't public and that can't be SIM-swapped. But who knows, Dorsey's wasn't.
First, I disagree that only high-value targets are at risk. I think, in general, targets are at risk for SIM-jacking. You can be a target because you're Jack Dorsey, but you can also be a target because you suddenly get swept up in a Twitter controversy, or because you run a corporate social media account, or because an ex-partner decides they want revenge over something.
A lot of our security protects against untargeted attacks because they're more common, but targeted attacks can't be completely ignored.
The second problem I have is that high-value targets use Facebook, Twitter, and Amazon, and they should be able to use these sites without worrying that their accounts are by-default insecure. We're not talking about a local library account, these are the biggest tech companies in the world. The president of the United States uses Twitter.
I think that taking a strong stance on security is important in that scenario.
I'm assuming (hoping) that Trump's account is secured with a phone-number that isn't public and that can't be SIM-swapped. But who knows, Dorsey's wasn't.