this post was submitted on 01 Mar 2024
381 points (99.2% liked)

Technology

59589 readers
3332 users here now

This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.

Our Rules

  1. Follow the lemmy.world rules.
  2. Only tech related content.
  3. Be excellent to each another!
  4. Mod approved content bots can post up to 10 articles per day.
  5. Threads asking for personal tech support may be deleted.
  6. Politics threads may be removed.
  7. No memes allowed as posts, OK to post as comments.
  8. Only approved bots from the list below, to ask if your bot can be added please contact us.
  9. Check for duplicates before posting, duplicates may be removed

Approved Bots

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
L3s@lemmy.world
L3s@fry.gs
L4s@fry.gs
L4s@lemmy.world
enu@lemmy.world
381
Tech Company Leaks 2FA Codes/Password Reset Links for Major Platforms (techcrunch.com)
submitted 8 months ago by Squire1039@lemm.ee to c/technology@lemmy.world
75 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

A security breach exposed two-factor authentication (2FA) codes/password reset links for millions of users on platforms like Facebook, Google, and TikTok.

Key Points:

  • YX International, an SMS routing company, left an internal database exposed online without a password.
  • The database contained one-time 2FA codes and password reset links for various tech giants.
  • YX International secured the database and claims to have "sealed the vulnerability."
  • The company wouldn't confirm how long the database was exposed or if anyone else accessed it.
  • Representatives from Meta, Google, and TikTok haven't commented yet.

Concerns:

  • This leak highlights the vulnerabilities of SMS-based 2FA compared to app-based methods.
  • The lack of information regarding the leak's duration and potential access by others raises concerns.

Gemini Recommendations:

  • Consider switching to app-based 2FA for increased security.
  • Be cautious of suspicious communications and avoid clicking unknown links.
  • Stay informed about potential security breaches affecting your online accounts.
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] miss_brainfarts@lemmy.blahaj.zone 51 points 8 months ago (23 children)

Aegis Authenticator, in case someone was wondering what to use

[–] gapbetweenus@feddit.de 4 points 8 months ago (13 children)

I'm not that tech savy, so I was under the impression sms 2FA was the best way to go - why is app based authentication better?

[–] nekusoul@lemmy.nekusoul.de 23 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Someone already explained it, but here's a ranking of the different methods which are commonly used in terms of security, from bad to good:

  • No 2FA
  • SMS/Phone-based TOTP (TOTP = the normally 6 digit code)
  • App-based TOTP
  • Hardware-token-based TOTP
  • Hardware-token (Fido2/WebAuthn/Passkeys)
[–] gapbetweenus@feddit.de 1 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Thanks, what level would you recommend for an more or less average user? Would guess my most sensitive data are bank and google account.

[–] bravesilvernest@lemmy.ml 7 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Go app based, and keep it something that doesn't sync (preferably) to external servers.

I'm using andOTP currently for mine. You can create backups every now and again and store them off your phone for safe keeping too 🙂

[–] gapbetweenus@feddit.de 1 points 8 months ago

Thank you, will look more into it.

load more comments (11 replies)
load more comments (20 replies)