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Question: 2. Read the article and summarize it in the discussion. 3. A response to the article: You must have the following: • Argumentative responses: Take a position on the discussed topic and use evidence supporting your claim -- two pieces of evidence. Keep this brief. Defend, Challenge, or Qualify • Rhetorical analysis: Write a thesis statement and a short response where you analyze at least one rhetorical choice made by the author. On this one, you will write the thesis statement identifying the rhetorical choice, and then you will briefly explain how the rhetorical choice benefits the argument. • NOTE: You are not writing an essay here. You are giving me an overview, showing that you understand the task and know how to identify these different components. To keep your sentences brief, be intentional with YOUR word choice. 23andMe: Profiles of 6.9 million people hacked 5th December 2023, 07:48 CST Share By Shiona McCallum & Joe Tidy BBC News Getty Images Welcome pack from 23andMeGetty Images Hackers have been able to gain access to personal information from about 6.9 million users of genetic testing company 23andMe, using customers' old passwords. In some cases this included family trees, birth years and geographic locations, the company said. After weeks of speculation the firm has put a number on the breach, with more than half of its customers affected. The stolen data does not include DNA records. 23andMe is a giant of the growing ancestor-tracing industry. It offers genetic testing from DNA, with ancestry breakdown and personalised health insights. The biotechnology company, which is based in South San Francisco, was not hacked itself but cyber-criminals logged into about 14,000 individual accounts, or 0.1% of customers, by using email and password details previously exposed in other hacks. As was first reported by Tech Crunch, the company has acknowledged that by accessing those accounts, hackers were then able to find their way into "a significant number of files containing profile information about other users' ancestry". The criminals downloaded not just the data from those accounts but the private information of all other users they had links to across the sprawling family trees on the website. The stolen data includes information like names, how each person is linked and in some cases birth years, locations, pictures, addresses and the percentage of DNA shared with relatives. As first reported by TechCrunch, the hackers were able to access the family tree profile information of about 1.4 million other customers participating in the DNA relatives feature, including display names and relationship labels. One batch of data was advertised on a hacking forum as a list of people with Jewish ancestry, sparking concerns of targeted attacks. But there is currently no evidence that any of the datasets being advertised have had any buyers or that they have been used by criminals. Oz Alashe, CEO of CybSafe, a risk management platform, said that the data breach at 23andMe "emphasises the importance of improving cyber-security behaviours in the general population". "Poorly secured accounts, with weak passwords and no two-factor authentication, put all those sharing their sensitive data at risk," he said. 23andMe said it was now telling all affected customers, as required by law. The firm will be forcing customers to change their passwords and improve their account security.
Summary: The article reports on a data breach of 6.9 million users' personal information from the genetic testing company, 23andMe. Hackers gained access to customer details, such as family trees, birth years, and geographical locations, however, DNA records were not stolen. This breach affected more than half of 23andMe's customers and involved the use of old passwords. Criminals were able to download data from linked accounts, expanding their reach to an enormous number of user profiles. 23andMe plans to improve account security by prompting customers to change their passwords. Argumentative Response: I argue that this situation underscores the urgent necessity for robust cybersecurity measures in companies handling sensitive user data. Evidence supporting my stance includes Oz Alashe, CEO of CybSafe, highlighting the risks imposed by poorly secured accounts and the fact that cybercriminals could access a large pool of users' data through linked accounts. Rhetorical Analysis: One effective rhetorical choice made by the authors is their use of specific details and tangible numbers to describe the extent of the damage. This strategy effectively underlines the scope of the breach, capturing the audience's attention. By quantifying the information pertaining to the breach, the authors portray a clear and concerning picture of data security issues in the digital age, thereby emphasising the importance of strong cybersecurity practices.
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