Twitter whistleblower Peiter ‘Mudge’ Zatko’s testimony was ‘terrifying’ for Capitol Hill staffers

Whistleblower Peiter “Mudge” Zatko’s dramatic congressional testimony final week about “egregious” safety issues at Twitter left some Capitol Hill aides on edge. 

Zatko, Twitter’s ex-security chief, described a litany of alleged privateness and nationwide safety dangers, together with the positioning hiring a Chinese language spy and giving 1000's of workers the power to entry customers’ accounts.

“[It’s] not far-fetched to say that workers inside the corporate might take over the accounts of all the senators on this room,” Zatko warned final Tuesday. 

His feedback left some Capitol Hill staffers fretting not nearly their bosses’ Twitter accounts — but in addition about their very own. 

After they’re not fetching espresso or speaking coverage, many congressional staffers use Twitter’s direct messages to gossip with one another and leak data to reporters.

Zatko’s feedback induced some aides to wonder if their personal messages might fall into the arms of international spies or get again to their bosses. 

“It was terrifying,” one congressional staffer instructed The Publish, including that folks on the Hill are “nervous.”

Many congressional staffers use Twitter’s direct messages to gossip with one another and leak data to reporters.

Los Angeles Occasions by way of Getty Imag

With the specter of Chinese language spies snooping on their DMs, Capitol Hill chatterboxes might flip to texting, old school telephone calls or encrypted messaging apps like Sign.

“I wouldn’t have any substantive conversations on Twitter at this level,” the aide mentioned.

Twitter says customers don't have any cause to fret about their accounts being compromised.

Following Zatko’s testimony final week, the positioning mentioned its hiring course of is safe and that final week’s testimony “solely confirms that Mr. Zatko’s allegations are riddled with inconsistencies and inaccuracies.”

Twitter employed Peiter Zatko in 2020 after Joe Biden and Barack Obama’s Twitter accounts have been hacked.

AP

Twitter employed Zatko in November 2020 following a high-profile breach through which tons of of accounts belonging to figures together with Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Elon Musk and Kanye West have been hijacked to advertise a cryptocurrency rip-off.

The corporate fired him in January 2022 for what it has mentioned was “poor efficiency and ineffective management.”