The January 2010 "Security Threat Report: 2010" from SOHOS starts with a section on social networking sites; the summary includes the statements, "2009 saw Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites solidify their position at the heart of many users' daily Internet activities, and saw these websites become a primary target for hackers. Because of this, social networks have become one of the most significant vectors for data loss and identity theft."
The section on social networking (page 2) reports, "Companies now commonly use blogs to disseminate and share information. Forums serve as a form of technical support where professionals can troubleshoot with peers and colleagues. Meanwhile, many companies embrace Facebook and MySpace because the sites present a great way to connect with customers and spread the latest company news or product offerings to the public."
Do you receive a steady stream of invitations to join Facebook, MySpace, and Friendster? I have been told repeatedly by friends and colleagues that I should post personal information on these sites, tweet on Twitter, and use some of the many other social-networking tools available. However, as a computer-security professional, I have purposely avoided joining Facebook and tweeting on Twitter.
It's against my sense of personal security to use Web sites asking for personal information unless I have a pretty good idea that they are secure. I like to use Netcraft's Web phishing toolbar to avoid connecting to dubious sites. Unfortunately, from what I have researched about Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, I do not feel that they warrant my trust.
Vast attack surface
Businesses have taken to using social-networking sites to promote their services and to connect with prospective clients. While the trend may be progressive, it is also progressively risky. Facebook was designed by Harvard University student Mark Zuckerberg in 2004 as a project to keep students connected. It appears that Mr. Zuckerberg was not familiar with techniques for developing secure Web-facing sites. The result was a non-secure application: a hacker's paradise, but an end-user's nightmare.
According to two Internet security researchers who presented at the Black Hat Briefings in 2008, sites like Facebook and MySpace are eminently hackable for several reasons. Shawn Moyer, founder of consultancy Agura Digital Security [and responsible for one of the funnier LinkedIn profiles that MK has ever seen], and Nathan Hamiel, founder of the Hexagon Security Group, presented evidence that social networks use "wide open" APIs; this means that the applications used to run sites like Facebook and Myspace allow unrestricted application data interchanges. The attack surface is vast. The programming flaws "permit attackers to tap into user applications and exploit site code that's wide open to cross-site scripting and other attacks." It seems tantamount to hanging out signs on Facebook and Myspace that say, "Hack Me."
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