Experts Don't Yahoo! Over Palin's E-Mail Practices

ABC News ^ | September 18, 2008 | Justin Rood

[Pinkbell]

It's not a great idea to run a government using Yahoo! e-mail accounts.

Gov. Sarah Palin's e-mail habit of using a private account to communicate with aides echos the worst practices of the Bush administration, says one expert.

That's the word from experts, anyway, reacting to news that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's Yahoo! e-mail had been hacked earlier this week. McCain's vice-presidential pick apparently used the accounts to communicate with key aides about government business.

The practice is dangerous, said experts, and can run counter to laws ensuring government is open and accountable -- a tough point for Palin, who has made "open government" a catchphrase of her political identity.

By using non-governmental email systems, "Your information is out there available, beyond the official mechanisms there to protect it," said Amit Yoran, the nation's first cybersecurity chief. Yoran is now CEO of Netwitness Corp., a computer security firm for government and private entities.

"When she's communicating about government programs, that information is not being protected with the typical precautions the government has put in place in its own risk management process," said Yoran.

Moreover, a hacked account could be used to falsify communications, noted Yoran – a point proven by one of the hackers, who used Palin's account to send a message to one of her assistants.

Two Yahoo! email accounts belonging to Palin were hacked early Tuesday by a group calling itself 'Anonymous'. Screen shots of her inbox were posted online, as well as a screenshot showing an email of an apparently personal nature from a Palin appointee to the governor.

[messierhunter]

Sorry, but it *is* pretty stupid to use Yahoo to conduct official business.

The burden of proof is on you to show that she used it for official business. Show me where in any of her emails she was conducting official business. You can't, can you? That means the only important thing left about this story is the violation of law and privacy.

[Yo-Yo]

For a few weeks, they were really on-fire with the whole rapid-response stuff—

I know. They sure were fast enough with a "lipstick" ad, but where's the "Obama's advisors ran Freddie and Fannie into the ground" ads?

[maine-iac7]

Sorry, it still shows poor judgement. It does not show a pattern of poor judgement, just in this circumstance. Somebody should have told her to quit doing that.

showing poor judgment because she has a person email account?

WTF are you people smoking - besides maybe libRAt weed...

[Ignatz]

These two sentences contradict each other, don't they?

AP response: "No the do not. They just mean exactly the opposite."

[maine-iac7]

Did I say that this lapse in judgement disqualifies her from public office? NO. I said quite the opposite in fact. You make a mistake, learn a lesson, and move on with life.

"lapse in judgement"?????????

"Mistake"????????

ARe you people smoking loco weed?

ARe you saying having a personal email account to chat with friends about PERSONAL matters is a "lapse in judgment" a "mistake"

I think I have to take a break and check what forum I'm on - one more post here blaming her in any way - and I'm going to really loose it - I might even tell some of you to go over to DU where you seem to belong.

[messierhunter]

Sorry, it still shows poor judgement. It does not show a pattern of poor judgement, just in this circumstance. Somebody should have told her to quit doing that.

Using a personal email address for personal matters outside of work shows poor judgement? Perhaps we need to see if she used a non-work phone for non-work matters. Perhaps we need to see if she's ever visted non-work websites on a non-work computer. You have a very funny idea of what constitutes poor judgement.

[jwparkerjr]

Somewhere around here last night I read an account supposedly from the very person who hacked the account. He told how he had gone about it and that he had spend considerable time going through the email hoping to find something incriminating, but alas he allowed it was all very innocuous and downright boring. It was only then he decided to post access information for everyone to see and use. He went on to say he soon came to his senses and realized the ramifications of what he had done. Seems like he said he shut off the system, disconnected it from the Internet and hid in the dark for a couple of hours.

My guess is they know by now exactly who it was and where it was done. It's pretty hard to do something like that without leaving tracks.

He or she deserves whatever happens to them.

[vpintheak]

Leftist turd garbage!!!! It’s her fault that her email got hacked into by criminals? Just like the people that say women who are raped asked for it. Leftists showing their true colors again, and it isn’t pretty.

[messierhunter]

And no, I don’t use Yahoo, Gmail or Hotmail when I’m communicating with anyone I have a work relationship with, even if the communication is not of a professional nature. Why? Because I know better. Hopefully she does too.

Using work email for non-work matters, even with co-workers, is anything but professional. Most companies will tell you that explicitly. I assume you have a professional email address, and in that case I'd expect you to know better.

[polymuser]

Check post 90. Always good to look through the rest before replying. Thanks.

[ketsu]

Actually, according to a story over at Malkin's blog, this was done by a single person. They didn't find anything interesting in the mailbox, so the had a hissy-fit and posted the email name and password tii the site admins panicked and pulled it after someone went in and changed the name and password.

Malkin doesn't understand what she's talking about. Whenever some kids vandalize an account like that, they *always* post it so they get "respect" in their community. Otherwise their peers won't believe them. There's a whole subculture around this sort of thing. It had nothing to do with politics.

[Knitebane]

ARe you saying having a personal email account to chat with friends about PERSONAL matters is a "lapse in judgment" a "mistake"

Frankly, using Yahoo! at all I would consider a lapse in judgment unless you're using it as a throwaway account.

Yahoo! mail has a horrific security record. You might as well write your messages on a public webserver for all to see.

As a person in the public eye, someone on Governor Palin's security detail should have warned her off from using third-party email systems. She should have used a nice local Alaska-based ISP's webmail system where she could send a cop down there and wail on them if they screwed it up.

Get this straight. There was a criminal act committed here. The perp needs to be prosecuted. No one is denying that.

And if someone steals your car, the car thief needs to be prosecuted.

However, if you left your keys in the ignition, you would bear some of the blame, no?

That's all anyone is saying about Governor Palin. She shouldn't have used Yahoo! mail for ANYTHING because it's a putrid, stinking security nightmare.

I think I have to take a break and check what forum I'm on

Perhaps you should. This is Free Republic, a conservative forum. And we expect people to think and to be responsible for their own actions.

[an amused spectator]

It's not a great idea to run a government using Yahoo! e-mail accounts.

It's not a great idea to lie like a rug while pretending you're writing a "news" article, Justin...

[maine-iac7]

I ‘replied’ long before #90 = but so many were posting so fast and furious - our posts got entered further down the line - but it seems you may have learned to do a bit of reading yourself before opining and perpetuating the wrong info...maybe even learned not to trust everything written/shown in the MSlimeMedia...good on you/

[Eva]

Some of Greta’s guests have been very liberal. She used the Fact Check guy to talk about some of the rumors surrounding Gov. Palin. Fact Check is run by Annenberg Foundation, who also helped fund all the left wing groups that Obama has been associated with, including his community organizing.

By the way, no one has bothered to answer my question about whether the blog that posted the emails was one of those that were vetted by the DNC and the Obama campaign to cover their convention.

I think that the hacking went deeper than just emails, they posted her personal phone list, as well.

[polymuser]

Gee, thanks gramma. Can I have my cookie now?