Mat Honan states in his article, How Apple and Amazon Security Flaws Led to My Epic Hacking, that he was mad at himself for allowing his digital life to be compromised. He wrote:
“In many ways, this was all my fault. My accounts were daisy-chained together… [and if I had] been regularly backing up the data on my MacBook, I wouldn’t have had to worry about losing more than a year’s worth of photos… or documents and e-mails that I had stored in no other location. Those security lapses are my fault, and I deeply, deeply regret them.” (1)
Honan also wrote that he was mad at himself for placing his trust into the digital services, namely Google, Amazon, and Apple, to secure his data (1). Though I do believe Honan could have been more diligent and took better care to protect his digital life, I don’t think his hacking was entirely his fault. Google, Amazon, and Apple should be at fault for not having a more secure system for their users and for themselves.
After reading the methods described by Honan as to how his accounts were hacked, I found that all the digital services mentioned need stronger authentication systems to better identify accounts owners from account hackers. Though Google does give users the option to use the 2-Step Verification system, they could also have other methods to protect users from being hacked. It is possible for others to find out one’s phone number or even steal one’s phone to potentially gain access to a Google account. So, along with 2-Step, Google could also provide a second password or a PIN system for users to protect their accounts from being hacked. Amazon should have a better authentication process to protect users from getting their accounts hacked for information. Phone calls and online inquiries could have security questions to deter hackers from accessing information. Amazon could also hide all the digits of user credit cards and password-protect to deter hackers. Apple could stop using the last four digits of user credit card numbers as a step to authenticate an account. It could use security questions or a second password for users to gain access to their accounts. This method could also be used for accounts using the AppleID to authenticate each separate account.
Having stronger authentication systems will provide protection for users and the digital services themselves from hackers trying to compromise digital information. Though Honan mostly blamed himself for the hacking of his accounts, digital services should also be at fault and try to make an effort to provide better protection for their users and deter hackers.
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