May 24, 2018

T-Mobile flaw let anyone access user info with only a phone number

A T-Mobile glitch left accounts exposed. Photo: Justin Sullivan / Getty

An exposed online interface for T-Mobile let anyone access user info knowing only a phone number.

The details: Researcher Ryan Stevenson notified T-Mobile of the bug in April, and the wireless carrier took down the problematic service the next day. The bug was first reported on by ZDNet.

  • Until it was taken down, T-Mobile had an active online tool for its computer programmers to connect its employees to the customer database, known as an API.
  • The API delivered information including address, PIN, account number and, on some accounts, tax identification number.
  • Researchers found a separate, similar T-Mobile bug in October.

A representative confirmed that T-Mobile investigated the flaw but found no sign any data had actually been stolen.

Go deeper

Neal Rothschild
26 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Right-wing media defanged by dissolving anti-Biden storylines

Data: NewsWhip; Chart: Naema Ahmed/Axios

The three biggest anti-Joe Biden storylines in right-wing media over the last year have either fizzled or are getting less online traction than they used to, according to data from NewsWhip provided exclusively to Axios.

Why it matters: This dynamic has rendered a formidable media ecosystem less effective in boosting President Trump as we move into the heart of the 2020 campaign.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Jacob Knutson
7 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Biden clarifies comments on African American and Latino communities

Joe Biden delivering a speech in Delaware in July. Photo: Mark Makela/Getty Images

Joe Biden explained on Twitter Thursday night what he "meant" by earlier comments suggesting that "the African American community is a monolith."

What they're saying: "Unlike the African-American community, with notable exceptions, the Latino community is an incredibly diverse community with incredibly different attitudes about different things," Biden remarked in an interview hosted by the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the National Association for Black Journalists, Politico reports.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated 8 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine tests negative for coronavirus after positive result

Photo: Justin Merriman/Getty Images

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) tested negative for the coronavirus after initially testing positive earlier Thursday, his office announced.

Why it matters: 73-year-old DeWine was set to meet President Trump Thursday on the tarmac at an airport in Cleveland and was tested as part of standard protocol.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow