Senators Ron Wyden and Cynthia Lummis questioned the SEC’s lack of multi-factor authentication and phishing-resistant hardware tokens for its X account.
More members of the United States Congress are calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to report on a hack that resulted in a fake announcement on a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund approval to be posted to X (formerly Twitter).
According to a Jan. 11 letter provided to Axios, Senators Ron Wyden and Cynthia Lummis urged SEC Inspector General Deborah Jeffrey to launch a probe into the commission’s cybersecurity practices. The two U.S. lawmakers called it “inexcusable” that the SEC had failed to follow protocols, seemingly allowing a hacker to post a message on X on Jan. 9 suggesting that a spot BTC exchange-traded product had been approved for listing on exchanges for the first time.
“[A] hack resulting in the publication of material information for investors could have significant impacts on the stability of the financial system and trust in public markets, including potential market manipulation,” said Wyden and Lummis. “We request you provide us an update on your investigation and the SEC’s remediation no later than February 12, 2024.”
