With Twitter in Disorder, How to Protect Your Account
2022-11-25
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1Twitter is in disorder.
2Elon Musk, its new owner, cut half of its workforce.
3Last week, hundreds more employees decided to leave the social media company.
4There are signs that their departure is affecting the system.
5Some users noticed problems receiving texts to sign in with two-step verification.
6Test pages are showing up.
7 Some users are seeing more unwanted messages called spam.
8Others report receiving new replies to long-removed tweets and seeing drafts of saved tweets disappear.
9Twitter will not simply shut down overnight.
10But security experts warn that the severe job cuts may open the door to bad actors.
11They could look for weaknesses in the system and harm user accounts.
12Some people are considering leaving Twitter and moving on to other social media sites.
13Experts advise those who stay to take steps to protect their accounts.
14If you only use your login and password to sign into Twitter, it is important, especially now, to add an extra step to the process.
15The extra step to confirm your identity, called authentication, makes it more difficult for hackers to get into your account.
16Twitter has three methods to choose from: text message, an authentication app or a security key.
17But some users have reported they are not receiving text messages to authenticate their accounts.
18Using an authentication app may be your best choice.
19This offers the most security.
20To do this, you will need to download an authentication app from the Apple or Android stores.
21Some examples include Google or Microsoft Authenticator, Authy, Duo Mobile and 1Password.
22Once you have downloaded the app, open Twitter on your desktop computer and click on the icon showing ellipses in a circle.
23There, select "Settings and privacy," then "Security and account access" and finally, "Security."
24Next, you can select "Authentication app" and follow the instructions to set it up.
25Twitter may ask you to share your email address to do this.
26Once you are all set, you can use the auto-generated codes from your authentication app to add extra security when logging in to Twitter.
27Jane Manchun Wong is an independent software and security researcher in Hong Kong.
28She suggests removing permissions to third-party websites and apps through your Twitter account.
29That is because of possible security problems with Twitter's API (or Application Programming Interface).
30API lets third parties access Twitter data to create apps that work with Twitter.
31With fewer people working at Twitter, it will take longer for the service to fix security issues.
32To turn off this feature, start in the "Security and account access" tool and go to "Apps and sessions."
33Here, you should find all the third-party apps that are connected to your Twitter account.
34You might even find some from years ago that no longer exist.
35And you can remove access to each one.
36If you do not like the idea of losing years of your tweet history, you can download your Twitter "archive" if you would like to save them.
37It might take some time to download, though.
38This tool is only available on the desktop version of Twitter, in the "Your account" section of settings.
39You will have to enter your password and authenticate again if you have that set up.
40When your archive is ready to download, you will get a notification on Twitter to download it on the desktop version of the site.
41While this process normally takes about 24 hours, it may take longer now.
42Some users have also reported having to try more than once.
43Some Twitter users are signing up for Mastodon, a previously little-known service that launched in 2016.
44Mastodon is a decentralized social network.
45That means it is not owned by a single company or billionaire.
46Instead, it is made up of a network of servers.
47Each server runs independently but can connect so people on different servers can communicate.
48You will need to select a "server" to join.
49But no matter which one you choose, you can still communicate with people on other servers.
50The process is like how you can email people from your Gmail account even if they are on Outlook or another email server.
51Once you are in, you can go to fedifinder.glitch.me and find your Twitter following or any Twitter lists you might have to see if they also have Mastodon accounts.
52Many Twitter users have begun listing their other social networks as well as their names and other information on their Twitter pages.
53This will make it easy for people to stay in touch with them - no matter what happens to Twitter.
54I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Twitter is in disorder. 2Elon Musk, its new owner, cut half of its workforce. Last week, hundreds more employees decided to leave the social media company. 3There are signs that their departure is affecting the system. Some users noticed problems receiving texts to sign in with two-step verification. Test pages are showing up. Some users are seeing more unwanted messages called spam. Others report receiving new replies to long-removed tweets and seeing drafts of saved tweets disappear. 4Twitter will not simply shut down overnight. But security experts warn that the severe job cuts may open the door to bad actors. They could look for weaknesses in the system and harm user accounts. 5Some people are considering leaving Twitter and moving on to other social media sites. Experts advise those who stay to take steps to protect their accounts. 6Enable multi-step authentication 7If you only use your login and password to sign into Twitter, it is important, especially now, to add an extra step to the process. The extra step to confirm your identity, called authentication, makes it more difficult for hackers to get into your account. 8Twitter has three methods to choose from: text message, an authentication app or a security key. But some users have reported they are not receiving text messages to authenticate their accounts. 9Using an authentication app may be your best choice. This offers the most security. 10To do this, you will need to download an authentication app from the Apple or Android stores. Some examples include Google or Microsoft Authenticator, Authy, Duo Mobile and 1Password. 11Once you have downloaded the app, open Twitter on your desktop computer and click on the icon showing ellipses in a circle. There, select "Settings and privacy," then "Security and account access" and finally, "Security." 12Next, you can select "Authentication app" and follow the instructions to set it up. Twitter may ask you to share your email address to do this. 13Once you are all set, you can use the auto-generated codes from your authentication app to add extra security when logging in to Twitter. 14Shut down third-party access 15Jane Manchun Wong is an independent software and security researcher in Hong Kong. She suggests removing permissions to third-party websites and apps through your Twitter account. 16That is because of possible security problems with Twitter's API (or Application Programming Interface). API lets third parties access Twitter data to create apps that work with Twitter. With fewer people working at Twitter, it will take longer for the service to fix security issues. 17To turn off this feature, start in the "Security and account access" tool and go to "Apps and sessions." Here, you should find all the third-party apps that are connected to your Twitter account. You might even find some from years ago that no longer exist. And you can remove access to each one. 18Download your archive 19If you do not like the idea of losing years of your tweet history, you can download your Twitter "archive" if you would like to save them. It might take some time to download, though. 20This tool is only available on the desktop version of Twitter, in the "Your account" section of settings. You will have to enter your password and authenticate again if you have that set up. 21When your archive is ready to download, you will get a notification on Twitter to download it on the desktop version of the site. While this process normally takes about 24 hours, it may take longer now. Some users have also reported having to try more than once. 22Save your followers' list 23Some Twitter users are signing up for Mastodon, a previously little-known service that launched in 2016. 24Mastodon is a decentralized social network. That means it is not owned by a single company or billionaire. Instead, it is made up of a network of servers. Each server runs independently but can connect so people on different servers can communicate. 25You will need to select a "server" to join. But no matter which one you choose, you can still communicate with people on other servers. The process is like how you can email people from your Gmail account even if they are on Outlook or another email server. 26Once you are in, you can go to fedifinder.glitch.me and find your Twitter following or any Twitter lists you might have to see if they also have Mastodon accounts. 27Many Twitter users have begun listing their other social networks as well as their names and other information on their Twitter pages. This will make it easy for people to stay in touch with them - no matter what happens to Twitter. 28I'm Bryan Lynn. 29The Associated Press reported this story. Hai Do adapted the report for Learning English. 30_____________________________________________________________ 31Words in This Story 32departure - n. the act of leaving 33verification - n. proof that something is true or correct 34authenticate - v. to prove that something is real, true, or what people say it is 35ellipse - n. a shape that resembles a flattened circle 36auto-generated - adj. something done automatically 37access - n. permission to enter or use something 38feature - n. an important ability 39archive - n. records or historical materials