US lawmakers urge SEC to fix cybersecurity after X account hack
Reuters
Published Jan 12, 2024 11:37AM ET
Updated Jan 12, 2024 11:47AM ET
(Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers have urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to review its cyber security preparedness after the financial regulator's X account posted market material information earlier in the week due to a hack.
Someone briefly accessed its X, formerly called Twitter, account on Tuesday, the agency had confirmed, and posted a fake message saying it had approved exchange traded funds (ETF) for bitcoin.
The SEC eventually approved the first U.S.-listed ETFs to track bitcoin on Wednesday, but the unauthorized post a day earlier led to a rise in the price of Bitcoin to around $48,000 before falling to below $45,000 minutes later.
In a letter to the agency on Thursday, Ron Wyden, a Democratic senator from Oregon, and Cynthia Lummis, a Republican senator from Wyoming, sought an investigation into the incident, which they deemed as "SEC's apparent failure to follow cybersecurity best practices".X, which is owned by billionaire and Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) boss Elon Musk, confirmed that hack. It said that an "unidentified individual" obtained control over a phone number associated with the agency's account and that the SEC did not have two-factor authentication enabled at the time.
Two-factor authentication (MFA) is a two-pronged privacy tool which allows access to an Internet account only after the user has keyed in the password and a security key sent over on email or on the phone.
"We urge you to investigate the agency's practices related to the use of MFA, and in particular, phishing-resistant MFA, to identify any remaining security gaps that must be addressed," Wyden and Lumis said in their letter.
The SEC had earlier said it was working with law enforcement to investigate the hack.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.