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Twitter Outlines Specific Detail of Recent Hack: 130 Accounts Impacted, Personal Information Compromised

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twitter outlines specific detail of recent hack 130 accounts impacted personal information compromised

As its investigation continues, on late Friday night, Twitter provided an update of the latest information about the recent hack which targeted the accounts of several high profile users. 

To recap the situation, at around 1pm on Wednesday, several celebrity accounts began tweeting out similar, odd messages regarding a Bitcoin giveaway.

Twitter hack

As you can see in these examples, the affected accounts included Barack Obama, Jeff Bezos, Kim Kardashian and more. Twitter users quickly established that the accounts had been hacked, but not before around $300k worth of Bitcoin had been sent through to the listed address. The listed account number where people were to send Bitcoin was the same on all the tweets.

Upon recognizing the incident, Twitter locked down all verified accounts as it sought to assess the situation, while Twitter also took expanded action that wasn’t as publicly visible.

As explained by Twitter:

“Shortly after we became aware of the ongoing situation, we took preemptive measures to restrict functionality for many accounts on Twitter – this included things like preventing them from Tweeting or changing passwords. […] We also locked accounts where a password had been recently changed out of an abundance of caution.”

So what happened? How, exactly, did the hacker – or hackers – get access to these high-profile accounts.

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“We believe attackers targeted certain Twitter employees through a social engineering scheme. […] The attackers successfully manipulated a small number of employees and used their credentials to access Twitter’s internal systems, including getting through our two-factor protections. As of now, we know that they accessed tools only available to our internal support teams to target 130 Twitter accounts. For 45 of those accounts, the attackers were able to initiate a password reset, login to the account, and send Tweets.”

Twitter reported that 130 accounts in total had been impacted late Thursday evening, and it now says that fewer than half of them were subsequently utilized in the hack.

The explanation appears to align with a New York Times report on the incident – on Friday, NYT published details that it had gleaned from a group of hackers who’ve claimed responsibility for the hack. NYT was able to verify their explanations by matching their Bitcoin accounts with the address listed in the tweets.

According to the report, a hacker going by the name of ‘Kirk’ was able to gain access to Twitter’s administration tools by first being added to Twitter’s internal Slack channel, where the details he needed had been posted in various exchanges. With this newfound access to Twitter’s control panel, Kirk claims to have first sought to sell usernames in the gaming community, where single letter handles (like @y, for example) are particularly popular.

After recruiting other hackers to assist in his plan, Kirk began selling usernames on Wednesday morning, with the prices for the hacked profiles quickly rising rapidly throughout the day. Given that initial success, Kirk then turned his attention to taking control of celebrity accounts, through which he eventually claims to have netted around $180k from people that had been duped by the fake messages.

The New York Times reports that Kirk stopped communicating with them after word circulated that the FBI had become involved in the case. 

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Twitter’s account of its findings thus far largely matches up with this overview – though, given this, that would mean that private information from these accounts was accessible in the hack.

Twitter confirms this, noting that:

  • Attackers were able to view personal information including email addresses and phone numbers, which are displayed to some users of our internal support tools.
  • In cases where an account was taken over by the attacker, they may have been able to view additional information. Our forensic investigation of these activities is still ongoing.

That additional information would include DMs, which could be a significant concern for those involved.

There’s also this:

“For up to eight of the Twitter accounts involved, the attackers took the additional step of downloading the account’s information through our “Your Twitter Data” tool. This is a tool that is meant to provide an account owner with a summary of their Twitter account details and activity. We are reaching out directly to any account owner where we know this to be true. None of the eight were verified accounts.”

If the NYT’s report is correct, that would likely have been the accounts initially sold by the hackers.

In some respects, the fact that these were not verified accounts seemingly lessens the severity of such – but either way, the hackers were theoretically able to access sensitive information, and full Twitter details on past owners of the hacked accounts.

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There’s no way to soften the blow here – this is a major breach of Twitter’s systems, which will erode trust in the platform for some time to come. If the details reported thus far are correct, the weakness here was human error, and that, in many respects, will always exist in all security chains. But still, as The Verge’s Casey Newton noted in his initial report on the incident.

“Twitter is, for better and worse, one of the world’s most important communications systems. […] After today it is no longer unthinkable, if it ever truly was, that someone could take over the account of a world leader and attempt to start a nuclear war.” 

Indeed, already US President Donald Trump has threatened war via tweet, while other remarks and observations he’s shared on the platform have impacted the stock market and sparked protest action.

It may seem like a stretch, like it could never get to that point – and it may seem now like these were just some trouble-making hackers looking to make a quick buck. But the significance of the incident cannot be overlooked. Twitter will need to work hard to show that such a hack cannot happen again.

Which, based on this explanation, it probably can’t do, but it will need to improve its processes to provide assurance that it’s working to reinforce its systems.  

There’ll be much more, no doubt, to follow on this.

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Snapchat Explores New Messaging Retention Feature: A Game-Changer or Risky Move?

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Snapchat Explores New Messaging Retention Feature: A Game-Changer or Risky Move?

In a recent announcement, Snapchat revealed a groundbreaking update that challenges its traditional design ethos. The platform is experimenting with an option that allows users to defy the 24-hour auto-delete rule, a feature synonymous with Snapchat’s ephemeral messaging model.

The proposed change aims to introduce a “Never delete” option in messaging retention settings, aligning Snapchat more closely with conventional messaging apps. While this move may blur Snapchat’s distinctive selling point, Snap appears convinced of its necessity.

According to Snap, the decision stems from user feedback and a commitment to innovation based on user needs. The company aims to provide greater flexibility and control over conversations, catering to the preferences of its community.

Currently undergoing trials in select markets, the new feature empowers users to adjust retention settings on a conversation-by-conversation basis. Flexibility remains paramount, with participants able to modify settings within chats and receive in-chat notifications to ensure transparency.

Snapchat underscores that the default auto-delete feature will persist, reinforcing its design philosophy centered on ephemerality. However, with the app gaining traction as a primary messaging platform, the option offers users a means to preserve longer chat histories.

The update marks a pivotal moment for Snapchat, renowned for its disappearing message premise, especially popular among younger demographics. Retaining this focus has been pivotal to Snapchat’s identity, but the shift suggests a broader strategy aimed at diversifying its user base.

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This strategy may appeal particularly to older demographics, potentially extending Snapchat’s relevance as users age. By emulating features of conventional messaging platforms, Snapchat seeks to enhance its appeal and broaden its reach.

Yet, the introduction of message retention poses questions about Snapchat’s uniqueness. While addressing user demands, the risk of diluting Snapchat’s distinctiveness looms large.

As Snapchat ventures into uncharted territory, the outcome of this experiment remains uncertain. Will message retention propel Snapchat to new heights, or will it compromise the platform’s uniqueness?

Only time will tell.

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Catering to specific audience boosts your business, says accountant turned coach

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Catering to specific audience boosts your business, says accountant turned coach

While it is tempting to try to appeal to a broad audience, the founder of alcohol-free coaching service Just the Tonic, Sandra Parker, believes the best thing you can do for your business is focus on your niche. Here’s how she did just that.

When running a business, reaching out to as many clients as possible can be tempting. But it also risks making your marketing “too generic,” warns Sandra Parker, the founder of Just The Tonic Coaching.

“From the very start of my business, I knew exactly who I could help and who I couldn’t,” Parker told My Biggest Lessons.

Parker struggled with alcohol dependence as a young professional. Today, her business targets high-achieving individuals who face challenges similar to those she had early in her career.

“I understand their frustrations, I understand their fears, and I understand their coping mechanisms and the stories they’re telling themselves,” Parker said. “Because of that, I’m able to market very effectively, to speak in a language that they understand, and am able to reach them.” 

“I believe that it’s really important that you know exactly who your customer or your client is, and you target them, and you resist the temptation to make your marketing too generic to try and reach everyone,” she explained.

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“If you speak specifically to your target clients, you will reach them, and I believe that’s the way that you’re going to be more successful.

Watch the video for more of Sandra Parker’s biggest lessons.

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Instagram Tests Live-Stream Games to Enhance Engagement

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Instagram Tests Live-Stream Games to Enhance Engagement

Instagram’s testing out some new options to help spice up your live-streams in the app, with some live broadcasters now able to select a game that they can play with viewers in-stream.

As you can see in these example screens, posted by Ahmed Ghanem, some creators now have the option to play either “This or That”, a question and answer prompt that you can share with your viewers, or “Trivia”, to generate more engagement within your IG live-streams.

That could be a simple way to spark more conversation and interaction, which could then lead into further engagement opportunities from your live audience.

Meta’s been exploring more ways to make live-streaming a bigger consideration for IG creators, with a view to live-streams potentially catching on with more users.

That includes the gradual expansion of its “Stars” live-stream donation program, giving more creators in more regions a means to accept donations from live-stream viewers, while back in December, Instagram also added some new options to make it easier to go live using third-party tools via desktop PCs.

Live streaming has been a major shift in China, where shopping live-streams, in particular, have led to massive opportunities for streaming platforms. They haven’t caught on in the same way in Western regions, but as TikTok and YouTube look to push live-stream adoption, there is still a chance that they will become a much bigger element in future.

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Which is why IG is also trying to stay in touch, and add more ways for its creators to engage via streams. Live-stream games is another element within this, which could make this a better community-building, and potentially sales-driving option.

We’ve asked Instagram for more information on this test, and we’ll update this post if/when we hear back.

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