Facebook accounts could be hacked without ever needing a password

A Facebook logo on an Ipad is reflected among source code on the LCD screen of a computer, in this photo illustration taken in Sarajevo June 18, 2014. PHOTO: REUTERS

We all know how easily your Facebook account’s security can be comprised if your passwords get saved on a public computer.

However, there’s another way hackers can get a hold of your account without you even noticing. James Martindale, 18, plugged in his T-Mobile SIM card and received a text from Facebook stating that he hadn’t logged into his account for a while despite not synchronising the new number to his Facebook account.

When he searched for an existing account with the new number sim card, Martindale found an account on Facebook. To try to access the account, Martindale pressed the password recovery key which gave him the option of texting a recovery code to the registered number to gain access.

In the end, Martindale could access an account previously associated with the number without needing a password. Now, that can be a serious cause of concern for general everyday users.

What’s more, Facebook also gave him the option to change the password in what the social media giant thought is a protective measure to prevent what already was happening. This would have locked the real user out of their account, or to make matters worse, meant he would never have known his account had been hacked.

“This can be game over for your account,” he wrote.

The problem stems from the fact that Facebook allows you to link multiple phone numbers to your account, and doesn’t force you to remove old ones once you’ve stopped using them.

Martindale says he reported the issue to Facebook three months ago, which acknowledged it was a ‘concern’ but hasn’t yet done anything about it.

“There are situations where phone numbers expire and are made available to someone other than the original owner,” Facebook responded. “For example, if a number has a new owner and they use it to log into Facebook, it could trigger a Facebook password reset. If that number is still associated with a user’s Facebook account, the person who now has that number could then take over the account.

“While this is a concern, this isn’t considered a bug for the bug bounty program. Facebook doesn’t have control over telecom providers who reissue phone numbers or with users having a phone number linked to their Facebook account that is no longer registered to them.”

The solution to this is quite obvious. You should immediately unlink any old numbers and email addresses from your account, by visiting settings and enable two-factor authentication along with enabling alerts about unrecognised logins.

Media: Free movement of people to continue for at least two years after Brexit.

LONDON: The free movement of European Union citizens to Britain will continue for at least two years after Brexit as part of a transitional deal, British media reported on Friday.

The first full round of talks to extricate Britain from the EU ended on Thursday with few compromises and differences over how to protect the future of expatriate citizens. Britain is due to leave the EU by the end of March 2019, after a June 23 referendum last year in which many Britons backed Brexit to restrict immigration and regain powers from Brussels.

Some senior members of Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet,
including finance minister Philip Hammond, have been pushing for
a transitional period designed to protect the economy and
reassure businesses. As part of Hammond’s plans, EU citizens would still be able to move to Britain for up to two years, The Times newspaper reported on Friday. The Guardian newspaper cited a senior cabinet source as saying free movement could last for up to four years. A spokesperson at May’s office did not offer an immediate comment when contacted by Reuters on Friday.

Saudi lets Qataris go on hajj, despite diplomatic row

Saudi Arabia said Thursday that Qataris wanting to perform this year’s hajj will be authorised to enter the kingdom for the pilgrimage, despite a diplomatic spat between the two countries.

In a statement, the Saudi hajj ministry said Qataris and residents of the Gulf emirate could join the pilgrimage as they were already “electronically registered for the hajj” and they had the necessary permits from Riyadh and Doha.

But the ministry has imposed restrictions on Qatari pilgrims arriving by plane, saying they must use airlines in agreement with the Saudi authorities.

They also needed to get visas on arrival in Jeddah or Medina, their sole points of entry in the kingdom, the ministry added.

Saudi Arabia and its allies Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates cut diplomatic ties and imposed sanctions on Doha in June, including the closure of their airspace to Qatari airlines.

The four Arab states accuse Qatar of supporting extremists and of growing too close to Shia-dominated Iran, the regional arch-rival of Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia.

Emerging novelist brings sing-along fantasy adventure to Pakistan

Faran Kiani. PHOTO: PUBLICITY

A fact that can’t be denied is that there is a dearth of good writers in Pakistan. We haven’t produced anything iconic and memorable in the last decade. But with the new generation being more exposed to literature and visual media from around the world, more young writers are coming up as a ray of hope.

If provided opportunities and sound platforms, the emerging talent probably has the potential to break out and take the local industry to new horizons. Faran Kiani, one such youngster, is a lawyer by profession and a novelist by passion. He juggles two worlds: the real one and the other of his imagination. He published his first novel Kiva – The Hidden Kingdom in 2013 and recently published his second one, titled Five Wishes and the Prophecy of the Prince.

Speaking with The Express Tribune, Kiani shared that Five Wishes was an adventure fantasy genre and was presented in the sing-along fashion, similar to Hollywood musicals. “I remember watching Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street and how it had a mix of regular dialogue delivery, as well as poetry. I thought if it can be a film, it can also take the shape of a book,” he said. “So the idea for Five Wishes came up from my desire to depict the same sing-along theme in a book by modernising and exaggerating the Shakespearean style used in Macbeth.”

Kiani plans to make Five Wishes into a franchise. He said it was the first in a series of five or six installments. “Thematically and narrative-wise, J R R Tolkien was a huge inspiration. Just like Lord of the Rings, my book revolves around the struggle between good and evil. It’s about five fairy sisters who are beautiful but lazy and entitled.”

The emerging writer has sold 400 copies of Five Wishes in the last three months and is doing a nation-wide launch in different schools, colleges and universities to promote reading, literature and creativity. The book so far has received a positive national and international response.

Talking about his motivation, the 26-year-old said he had been writing for the past six years. He wrote his first novel while staying in the hospital with his mother and published it on Amazon. However, it was his second effort Five Wishes that came through, which he is using to help liberate the youth from fears of creativity. Kiani combines a motivational session with his book launch. “I have always had a vivid imagination. I wrote a book when I was in third grade, illustrated it, printed it out and stapled it. But I took it seriously after 2010,” he said.

He noted that he is in talks with an animation company from the US to turn the book into a film. “If this comes through, it will be the first of its kind from Pakistan. The movie-book release hasn’t been done here so far, so I’m really excited to see it happen.” He also noted while the film will be in English, he would like to bring it to Pakistan as well.

Panama-gate case: SC reserves verdict

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with his daughter Maryam Nawaz. PHOTO: ONLINE / FILE

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday reserved its verdict in Panamagate case filed against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family over alleged corruption.

The judgment was reserved after counsels of both sides concluded their arguments before a three-judge bench of the apex court headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan.

Justice Azmat Saeed Sheikh observed that they will not deviate from any law while delivering judgment in the case. “We are conscious of the fundamental rights of petitioners and respondents,” he observed.

The bench further said they will announce the date for the final hearing later.

Earlier in the day, the apex court opened the ‘confidential’ volume of the Panamagate inquiry report submitted by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) tasked to probe Sharif family’s offshore wealth on July 10.

The top court bench had not made volume X public on the request of JIT head Wajid Zia, who was of the opinion that it would be helpful in carrying out further investigations.

The volume titled “Mutual Legal Assistance Requests ─ Ongoing” reportedly contains details of the six-member inquiry panel’s correspondence and documents obtained from foreign countries during the 60-day probe into the offshore assets of the ruling family in line with the top court’s historic April 20 verdict.

The court earlier hinted at making the volume public after lawyers of the Sharif family had objected to the JIT’s request for withholding volume X of the report, terming it a “mala fide act”. “[This] is itself a mala fide act and a breach of the Respondent No1’s [PM’s] fundamental rights guaranteed by Articles 4, 9, 14, 25 and 10A of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973,” said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s lawyer Khawaja Haris in objections filed on the JIT report.

The counsel had requested the court to provide a copy of volume X to the prime minister before proceeding further in the case. Upon this Justice Ejaz remarked that the court would open the said volume for transparency.

Turkey marks coup defeat with rallies, Erdogan warning to 'traitors'

Turkish Presidential Press Service shows Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (C) and his wife Emine Erdogan (C/L) as they walk to a ceremony site on July 15 Martyrs Bridge" (Bosphorus Bridge) in Istanbul. PHOTO: AFP

ANKARA: Turkey on Saturday marked one year since the defeat of the failed coup bid with mass nationwide rallies seeking to showcase national unity and a stern warning by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to “chop off the heads” of traitors.

The authorities declared July 15 an annual national holiday of “democracy and unity”, billing the foiling of the putsch as a historic victory of Turkish democracy.

In an intense programme aiming to hammer home the anniversary’s importance, Erdogan attended a special session of parliament in Ankara, spoke to a mass rally in Istanbul and then flew back to the capital for a rally outside parliament and a special event at the presidential palace in the early hours of the morning.

Speaking to hundreds of thousands by the bridge across the Bosphorus in Istanbul that was a fighting flashpoint, Erdogan warned Turkey could reintroduce capital punishment. “First of all we will chop off the heads of those traitors,” Erdogan said, reaffirming he would sign any passed by parliament bill on resuming executions.

Any move to restore capital punishment – which Turkey abolished in 2004 – would effectively end Ankara’s European Union membership ambitions.

Erdogan also said the suspects being tried over the failed coup should wear uniform clothing like the notorious orange jumpsuits used at US military prison at Guantanamo Bay. “When they appear in court, let’s make them appear in uniform suits like in Guantanamo,” Erdogan said to cheers.

Supporters chanted “we are soldiers of Tayyip [Erdogan]”, with some even brandishing nooses in a symbol of their support for the death penalty.

In the later speech to thousands outside parliament in Ankara which was bombed by warplanes that night, Erdogan declaimed “our nation showed the whole world what a nation we are on July 15.”

The crowds later made their way to the palace where dozens had camped outside for the final official event during which Erdogan inaugurated a monument to the victims which has people hold up the crescent and star symbols of the Turkish flag.

Two hundred and forty nine people, not including the plotters, were killed when a disgruntled faction of the army sent tanks into the streets and war planes into the sky in a bid to overthrow Erdogan after one-and-a-half decades in power. But they were thwarted within hours as the authorities regrouped and people poured into the streets in support of Erdogan, who blamed followers of his ally-turned-nemesis, the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen.

“Did my citizens have weapons? They had their flags like today but they had a more efficient weapon: their faith,” Erdogan said in Istanbul.

Murat, an Erdogan supporter at the Ankara rally, said: “If that happened once more, I would stay out again. That night, it was like a war. We take ownership of this country and this people.”

In the wake of the failed coup bid, authorities embarked on the biggest purge in Turkey’s history, arresting 50,000 people and sacking almost three times as many. Erdogan also shored up his position by winning a referendum on enhancing his powers earlier this year.

In the latest dismissals, another 7,563 police, soldiers and other state employees were fired late Friday under the state of emergency that has been in place since July 20 last year. Erdogan said a decision would be made on Monday over whether to recommend extending the emergency by another three months.

Turkey’s opposition had put political disputes aside on the night of the putsch but the scale of the purge has intensified political divisions.
The celebrations come less than a week after the head of the Republican People’s Party [CHP] Kemal Kilicdaroglu held the largest opposition rally in Turkey in years, pushing for ‘justice’ in a move that irked Erdogan.

“Over the last year, the judicial proceedings… moved outside the framework of the law,” Kilicdaroglu told the special session of parliament. He also called for full clarity over what happened on the night of July 15, with questions still remaining over when the authorities first found out an uprising was afoot.

But Erdogan angrily slammed as an ‘immorality’ opposition claims of a “controlled coup” which the authorities had known about in advance and then taken advantage of.

Gulen has always denied involvement and in a new statement Friday said the accusations were “baseless, politically motivated slanders” and slammed a “witch hunt” of Erdogan’s critics.

The scale of Saturday’s nationwide commemorations is aimed at etching July 15, 2016 into the minds of Turks as a key date in the history of the modern state. Giant posters designed by the presidency have sprung up across billboards in Istanbul and Ankara showing gaudy paintings that portray the key events of the coup night with the slogan “the epic of July 15”.

Illuminated anti-coup slogans were hung between the minarets of some of Istanbul’s greatest Ottoman mosques.

Meanwhile mobile phone users in Turkey were surprised to hear a voice message by Erdogan himself when placing a call, congratulating them on the defeat of the coup.

With a day to go, Sharifs’ legal strategy still unclear

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif waves as his son, Hussain Nawaz looks on. PHOTO: REUTERS

ISLAMABAD: A three-judge of the Supreme Court is all set to examine tomorrow (Monday) the Joint Investigation Team (JIT)’s damning report on the murky offshore business dealings of the Sharif family, but the ruling family has yet to come up with a clear legal strategy.

Only a day before the Supreme Court hearing, the Sharif family contacted members of their previous legal team that appeared before a five-judge larger bench in the Panamagate case. However, none of its members is available to plead the case.

Sources told The Express Tribune that Makhdoom Ali Khan, who had represented Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during the Panamagate hearings, is engaged in London and Washington and will not be available for the next few weeks.

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“Similarly, Shahid Hamid, the counsel for Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Maryam Nawaz and her husband Safdar, is also on general adjournment till August 10 as he is also abroad.

“The family has contacted Salman Akram Raja, but it is yet to be confirmed that he would appear on behalf of Hussain Nawaz and Hassan Nawaz on Monday,” a source said.

However, Raja is also scheduled to fly abroad next week. The family has also contacted senior lawyer Khalid Anwar but surprisingly he has not consented to representing any of its member.

Sources claim the family has started contacting its previous legal team on the advice of Khawaja Haris, who is supervising the legal strategy in connection with the JIT report and he is continuously in touch with Premier Sharif and his family for the last two months.

Haris has advised separate counsel for each respondent and even offered to withdraw his services if the previous team showed willingness to appear before the court. However, the family wants to retain him as Sharif’s counsel.

Senior PML-N lawyers wonder why the ruling family is contacting other counsels at the eleventh hours, instead of relying on Haris. “I have already advised the family that no one knows the case better than Khawaja Haris and they should rely on him,” said a member of the previous legal team.

Another PML-N’s legal wizard said the Sharif family should have known from day one that they would need a counsel for every respondent as Haris could not represent every one of them technically.

“This is rather their apathy that the case is listed for Monday (tomorrow) but no objections have been filed yet. Does this mean the prime minister and his family have accepted the report?” he wondered.

The lawyer called it ‘a huge faux pas’ that objections on the JIT report were not filed on Saturday, adding that it was not only a legal but more importantly a political failure as they needed to show the people and the world about their point of view and grievances against the report.

However, this is not the first time the Sharif family’s legal strategy has been criticised by the party’s lawyers.

Firstly, the family was represented by Salman Aslam Butt and Sheikh Akram. Later, both were replaced by Makhdoom Ali Khan, Salman Akram Raja and Shahid Hamid. Khawaja Haris was the only counsel, who has assisted the family before the JIT.

However, it is expected that the final strategy will be devised in today’s (Sunday) meeting in which they will decide whether they should seek time from the court or file objections to the JIT report, which have already been drafted by Haris

In a related development, the Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) office has submitted transcripts of the speeches of three PML-N leaders – Khawaj Saad Rafique, Talal Chaudhry and Asif Karmani – who allegedly targeted the JIT.

The AGP office has also submitted details of the value of advertisements, which have been given to TV channels since April. It is learnt that Geo TV has got Rs23,028,320 worth advertisements during the said time.

PM’s shunning public gatherings

Since July 10, when the JIT report was submitted in the Supreme Court, the premier has avoided attending any public event and is focusing on internal huddles and party meet-ups to map out the future strategy.

A number of public gatherings, including those being organised in connection with Pakistan’s 70th Independence Day have been postponed following Sharif’s decision to keep a low-profile as far as public events are concerned, The Express Tribune has learnt.

Instead, Sharif is devoting most of his time to consultative sessions with his political and legal aides to deal with the challenges posed by the JIT report amidst resonating calls for him to step down.

Sources told The Express Tribune that some senior leaders of the PML-N have advised Sharif to avoid public gatherings for the next few days and wait till the apex court resumes hearing of Panamagate case and then formulate a strategy depending upon how the proceedings of the case unfold.

Sources said top PML-N leaders, including Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Leader of the House in Senate Raja Zafarul Haq, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and Defence Production Minister Rana Tanvir Ahmad Khan are not in favour of developing hostility with the judiciary.

They believe that any aggressive public statement from Sharif about the judiciary could end up creating more problems for the ruling party.

On the other hand, another powerful group of aides, including Khawaja Asif, Saad Rafique, Ishaq Dar and Ahsan Iqbal, are of the view that Sharif should mobilise public in the face of ongoing crisis.

The group, sources said, insist that the Sharif family’s legal team submit ‘strong’ objections against the JIT report in the apex court.

However, the PM’s legal wizards are concerned that if the top court shoots down the objections raised by the respondents, the Sharif family would hardly be left with any workable option in its defence.

(With additional reporting by Sardar Sikander) Express Tribune