Is the latest True controversy a case of mass paranoia?

[webfact]

OPINION

Is the latest True controversy a case of mass paranoia?

By Tulsathit Taptim 
The Nation

 

Something is not quite right when you put what True Corp and the Interior Ministry said side by side regarding the latest controversy surrounding the telecom giant.
 

Before you do that, let’s recap what the uproar is about. It has to do with personal data of True smartphone subscribers being leaked, exposing several thousand people to potential risks such as identity theft.

 

Interior Minister Anupong Paochinda described the leak as “trivial”. True, on the other hand, reportedly said the leak was the work of an expert hacker, something the company could do little about.

 

In other words, a sophisticated cyber-criminal was responsible for a “trivial” incident. I hope you see my point, and forgive me for not knowing how to feel. Should I rest assured that smart hackers are interested in only trivial stuff, or should I be worried that the government regards hacking private information in a telecom giant’s database as trivial?

 

The fresh controversy involving True Corp is not about TV content or live broadcast disputes, but something that the likes of CNN, BBC or the Washington Post would jump at with glee. After all, Facebook is currently under intense international scrutiny for a similar scandal involving a massive data breach.

 

True’s “trivial” leak was big enough to draw the attention of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).

 

The results of the telecom watchdog’s enquiry elicited a half-hearted apology from True – although it did little to satisfy critics, who say the reaction was too little and too late.

 

Critics don’t agree with Anupong that the leak was trivial. They say the hacked data could be exploited by marketing people or even criminals. Some have also cited the Facebook scandal, in which users’ information was allegedly exploited to sway the US presidential campaign, culminating in Donald Trump’s unexpected victory.

 

Previous True controversies had to do with its market dominance, which on paper doesn’t amount to a monopoly but makes the company very powerful all the same. TrueVisions, for example, is not a monopoly. However, its customers have little bargaining power when popular content or live sport broadcasts disappear from their screens due to a copyright dispute, or the provider’s reluctance to spend “too much” money buying programmes that are “too expensive”.

 

The present controversy, however, has other disturbing aspects. The leaked subscribers’ information contained official identification numbers, ID cards and home addresses. As critics pointed out, criminals may have seen the leaked data and have already started pondering what to do with it – although Anupong, when asked for comment, failed to see any immediate danger.

 

“Only what’s on the surface of the ID card is out in the open,” he said. “It contains nothing sensitive.”

 

Nonetheless, True has been hit by a tide of public outrage, which has escalated following the company’s claim that it was a victim of a highly sophisticated hacking operation. Doubters say the leak was actually the result of poor handling of sensitive data or naivety,

rather than complicated and well-planned scheming by outsiders. Some also claimed that warnings of weak data protection had been sounded prior to the leak.

 

Critics have called on the NBTC to nip the problem in the bud. They note that, at a time when virtually every online commercial activity requires personal data, we are seeing just the tip of the data-breach iceberg. They insist that half-hearted measures by the NBTC or the likes of Anupong could lead to more failures in handling of personal information resulting in abuse and data theft on a grand scale.

 

“Please, please, please. Could we have a reaction from someone with a bit of digital knowledge?” a social media poster commented with exasperation. He added that most Thai politicians and bureaucrats could not match a 10-year-old kid for knowledge of computing and the Internet. 

 

The current uproar is also being directed at the NBTC, which is perceived as not fully protecting consumers’ interests. That perception may or may not be accurate, but it seems to underline the public’s reliance on the commission to shield them from such breaches and abuse. The new constitution shifts the responsibility of protecting telecom consumers from the government to the commission, mainly because politicians are perceived as more vulnerable to conflicts of interests.

 

In short, a lot of people don’t want the latest True problem to be played down. They point out that Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg was hauled before the US Congress to explain a data leak that did not even include users’ national ID numbers.

 

True, the NBTC, or Anupong for that matter, must never think that their critics are being paranoid or overly cautious. When it comes to abuse of personal data, pre-emptive action is always of the utmost importance. Simply put, when the cat is out of the bag, it’s impossible to put it back in, and it can wreak havoc. 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30343884

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-04-25

[faraday]

Perhaps it was just a small scale 'try out' before another one is used on Facebook, in time for next February.

 

So, to compare what has happened, to what maybe could happen, is trivial.

 

[stephen tracy]

My understanding now is that whatever a member of the current "government" says, the opposite is in fact true. So "trivial" here actually means "seriously dangerous". If you stick with this general rule, you will avoid any potential confusion.

[Samui Bodoh]

46 minutes ago, webfact said:

Is the latest True controversy a case of mass paranoia?

 

No, it is a case of mass stupidity.

 

True had a data leak and we uninformed plebes will never know how serious it was because the government will never tell. What will be the consequences? We will never know because the government doesn't take it seriously. Will this occur again? I would say certainly but the question is whether the government actually tells the public.

 

Is this an effective and safe way to manage the the public airwaves/spectrum? Absolutely not.

 

Will the government continue to manage the airwaves/spectrum in an ineffective and unsafe manner? Yes.

 

Welcome to Thailand 4.0.

 

[YetAnother]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

True, the NBTC, or Anupong for that matter, must never think that their critics are being paranoid or overly cautious.

thai DNA rejects all criticism and wishes all critics to disappear

[Anak Nakal]

NBTC serve government not people.

Now Thailand not 4.0, Thailand 0.4 

[MaxLee]

30 minutes ago, Anak Nakal said:

NBTC serve government not people.

Now Thailand not 4.0, Thailand 0.4 

WRONG,..... it's Thailand - 0.000000000000000................ with a SH******T Server 

[hansnl]

4 hours ago, stephen tracy said:

My understanding now is that whatever a member of the current "government" says, the opposite is in fact true. So "trivial" here actually means "seriously dangerous". If you stick with this general rule, you will avoid any potential confusion.

Of course it's all to blame on the current government.

And why not.

Very handy to cover up the exploits of the former government.

[MaxYakov]

Yet another reason for me to not use a smartphone. I do have one (it was a gift) without a SIM card and I use it only as an alarm clock.

[stephen tracy]

5 hours ago, hansnl said:

Of course it's all to blame on the current government.

And why not.

Very handy to cover up the exploits of the former government.

Whose covering up? Everyone is well aware of the exploits of the former government but the former government is not the government now, which is what I was commenting on. And to repeat, I do not believe a single word that comes out of the mouths of any individual l (not just the man-child and Dumbo) that represents the current government. Nor do I have any respect for a gang of people who have proven time and time again that they are so irretrievably stupid that they can't even lie convincingly. "My dead friend gave them to me...".  Classic. Or to paraphrase Prayuth on multiple occasions when asked a question: "I don't know, don't ask me, how should I know?, ask them, stop asking questions, it doesn't matter, they don't understand Thainess..." followed by a banana peel flying through the air. Enough said.

[KiwiKiwi]

33 minutes ago, stephen tracy said:

Whose covering up? Everyone is well aware of the exploits of the former government but the former government is not the government now, which is what I was commenting on. And to repeat, I do not believe a single word that comes out of the mouths of any individual l (not just the man-child and Dumbo) that represents the current government. Nor do I have any respect for a gang of people who have proven time and time again that they are so irretrievably stupid that they can't even lie convincingly. "My dead friend gave them to me...".  Classic. Or to paraphrase Prayuth on multiple occasions when asked a question: "I don't know, don't ask me, how should I know?, ask them, stop asking questions, it doesn't matter, they don't understand Thainess..." followed by a banana peel flying through the air. Enough said.

Nice characterisaton. For anyone with a brain larger than a walnut, these two are a real worry. I'm lucky, I'm not Thai and can sling my hook whenever I please, but what about the Thai people? I know people get the government they deserve and God knows Thais do deserve this lot, but really, it's very hard not to feel sorry for them. Their future as a nation is truly and seriously grim whatever eventuates. Mind you, a good few foreigners think they're wonderful. Goes to show you never can tell - think the worst about most people and you'll still be underestimating the real awfulness of it all.

[Bluespunk]

13 hours ago, webfact said:

The fresh controversy involving True Corp is not about TV content or live broadcast disputes, but something that the likes of CNN, BBC or the Washington Post would jump at with glee.

Or, as some would say, report it in a responsible manner.

[metisdead]

An off topic post has been removed. 

[IAMHERE]

described the leak as “trivial”

The definition of trivial is somebody else's information was compromised, not mine.

[SABloke]

Well, I received a bill which showed that I had already paid the 8,878 Baht that I owed, so zero due this month (April) - In reality I had paid a month in advance as I was leaving for holiday and I didn't owe anything, but my bill is only 855 Baht. Then 2 nights ago my internet suddenly cuts out and comes up with the true message of "Pay later and continue using" (Thai). So I called the call centre and they said I owed 1007 Baht (Weird figure) and my last payment was in Feb.  I had to then email my 2 bank receipts from March showing I had paid twice and they cleared the mysterious 1007 Baht. (Which the original electronic voice stated was 1007 DOLLARS??)

 

My point is that there definitely seems to have been more of a hack than they are reporting since I am not a True Smartphone user and we don't use Dollars in Thailand.