This Hacker Can Use Your Amazon Wish List To Take Control Of Your Entire Online Life

ScreengrabA comedian named Erik Stolhanske let Brandan Geise, a cybersecurity expert at a security firm called SecureState, go after him and try to hack his online identity, reports CBS News.

Going through a site that aggregates people's personal information, Spokeo, Geise found the comedian's Amazon account, his email address, and his house address. Using the email address, Geise found his Amazon Wish List.

Here's where the weaknesses start to show, of course – at the human level. The security expert calls up Amazon customer service (on the phone!) and, thanks to some loopholes and social engineering based on all the data he'd collected, is able to fully take over Stolhanske's Amazon account.

As the dominos begin to fall, Geise manages to take over Stolhanske's AOL account, Apple ID, and main email accounts. For all the details on how he did so, read it on CBS News »

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