Thursday, January 19, 2017

If You're Hacked on Facebook, It Was Probably By a Friend - Science

Most people are concerned about the prospect of their social media accounts being hacked, but a new study finds that it's actually people we know who frequently access our accounts without our permission.  (Science Daily:  One in five adults secretly access their friends' Facebook accounts)

Well, isn't this ducky.  I'm sure you want proof so let's see what we have here.

In a survey of 1,308 U.S. adult Facebook users, University of British Columbia researchers found that 24 per cent -- or more than one in five -- had snooped on the Facebook accounts of their friends, romantic partners or family members, using the victims' own computers or cellphones.

- SD

It's a reasonably good-sized sample so it seems to me it's true or they're simply lying and we have no reason to believe the latter.


"It's clearly a widespread practice. Facebook private messages, pictures or videos are easy targets when the account owner is already logged on and has left their computer or mobile open for viewing," said Wali Ahmed Usmani, study author and computer science master's student.

People admitted to spying on their friends, family, and romantic partners out of simple curiosity or fun -- for example, setting a victim's status or profile picture to something humorous. But other motives were darker, such as jealousy or animosity.

- SD

We question anything when someone says it is 'clearly true' but the sample appears to give reasonable basis for the statement.


There is a consequence for the hacking, however.

"Jealous snoops generally plan their action and focus on personal messages, accessing the account for 15 minutes or longer," said computer science professor Ivan Beschastnikh, a senior author on the paper.

"And the consequences are significant: in many cases, snooping effectively ended the relationship."

- SD

Go ahead and hack, wounded Casanova, but it ain't going to get better that way.


And the conclusion:

The findings highlight the ineffectiveness of passwords and device PINs in stopping unauthorized access by insiders, added electrical and computer engineering professor Kosta Beznosov, the paper's other senior author.

"There's no single best defense -- though a combination of changing passwords regularly, logging out of your account and other security practices can definitely help," said Beznosov.

- SD


No need for an editorial.  Have a ball with it.

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