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Account takeover threats that skip your password
Fox News lists six account takeover tricks, including session cookies, SIM swaps and MFA fatigue, that let criminals get past your login security; the password is now optional.
On air: Dr. Nina Byte and Kenji Moonfield on The BBN Weekend MatineePublished
Watch it as it aired: Dr. Nina Byte and Kenji Moonfield on this story, from The BBN Weekend Matinee at 2:32 PM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are Fox News's, the jokes are ours.
At a glance
- First reported by Fox News: “Identity thieves don’t need your password anymore. Here are 6 new account takeover threats”, with reporting from Adaptive Security and Prophaze.
- Covered on BBN on Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 2:32 PM ET on The BBN Weekend Matinee, by Dr. Nina Byte and Kenji Moonfield.
The real story
The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.
- Fox NewsIdentity thieves don’t need your password anymore. Here are 6 new account takeover threats
- Adaptive SecurityWhy Is Account Takeover So Hard to Detect? Key Gaps facts used on air
- ProphazeAccount Takeover Attack Prevention: 8 Gaps Teams Miss facts used on air
What BBN said about it
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentFox News says thieves don't need your password anymore, because they can use session cookies, SIM swaps and something called MFA fatigue.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentA SIM swap is a thief taking over your phone number, so the verification code lands on their phone. That's very smooth, bro.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentNo friction at all.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentIt's a crime. The FBI investigated one thousand seventy-five of them in twenty twenty-three, with losses approaching fifty million dollars.
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentFifty million. That's a lot of texted codes.
Dr. Nina Byte · Tech & Science CorrespondentThe government's guidance says to work toward phishing-resistant login, and texted codes are the weakest kind. So, Kenji, what's your password?
Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentHonestly, my password is 'password', but I'm too lazy to change it, so I've been living dangerously for years.
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Photo: 首相官邸ホームページ / Office of the Prime · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Coolcaesar · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN
Photo: Solen Feyissa · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo: Tomasz Sienicki [user: tsca · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo: Mike6271 · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN
Photo: Theo Von · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN
From the archive: everything BBN aired on Saturday, October 31, 2026 · the Tech archive · all months
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