Amazon addresses security exploit after journalist hack

After a tech reporter detailed his nightmarish saga of being hacked because of Amazon and Apple security flaws, the e-commerce giant says it has changed its system to make things more secure.

When tech reporters get hacked, it seems like tech companies pay attention.

Wired reporter Mat Honan's entire online life was compromised by a hacker named Phobia four days ago. Phobia used Honan's AppleCare and Amazon IDs, along with his billing address and last four digits of his credit card to get into his various online accounts. Apple responded yesterday saying that it was looking into how users can reset their account passwords to ensure data protection; and Amazon responded today.

"We have investigated the reported exploit, and can confirm that the exploit has been closed as of yesterday afternoon," an Amazon representative told CNET today.

What this means is that Amazon customers can no longer make changes to their account settings by telephone, according to PC Magazine. A small but significant change -- because it was by calling Amazon that Phobia eventually succeeded in deleting Honan's Google and Twitter accounts and wiping his MacBook, iPad, and iPhone clean.

Dropbox confirms it was hacked, offers users help

After a two-week investigation, the online file storage service confirms that usernames and passwords were stolen from third party Web sites and then used to access Dropbox accounts

When a few hundred Dropbox users began receiving spam emails about online casinos and gambling sites two weeks ago, it seemed like something was up. And indeed there was.

The online file storage service confirmed todaythat hackers accessed usernames and passwords from third party sites and then used them to get into Dropbox users' accounts.

"Our investigation found that usernames and passwords recently stolen from other websites were used to sign in to a small number of Dropbox accounts. We've contacted these users and have helped them protect their accounts," the company wrote in a blog post today. "A stolen password was also used to access an employee Dropbox account containing a project document with user email addresses. We believe this improper access is what led to the spam."