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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 genetic testing firm 23andMe had a significant data breach where hackers accessed personal information of about 6.9 million users. This included data such as family trees, birth years, geographic locations, but not DNA records. The hackers used old passwords and email details exposed in previous hacks and accessed around 0.1% of customer accounts. They leveraged this to gain information across expansive family trees on the platform. Cybersecurity experts highlighted poorly secured accounts and weak passwords as key risk factors. In response, 23andMe is enforcing password changes and enhanced account security. Argumentative response: I stand against the lax data security measures of 23andMe, as they indirectly contributed to this breach. The evidence can be found in their current response; they're only now instituting password changes and greater account security. Moreover, as per a cybersecurity expert’s statement, the accounts lacked basic safeguards like two-factor authentication. Rhetorical analysis - Thesis statement: The authors utilize a fact-based narrative, employing concrete data to underscore the scale of the breach. The authors' use of specific numbers (like 6.9 million users affected and 0.1% of customer accounts accessed) significantly bolsters their argument by offering readers a vivid sense of the breach's magnitude. This fact-based approach increases the credibility of their claims, leaving little room for doubt or speculation.
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