Our vulnerable online world

Given the potential gains, hoax attacks such as the recent fake White House bomb tweet from Associated Press will continue, write Chris Clearfield and András Tilcsik

NEVER in the history of written communication could 140 characters have the impact that they can have now.

Two weeks ago, after gaining access to the Associated Press’s main Twitter account @AP, the Syrian Electronic Army (SEA) posted a fake tweet reporting two explosions in the White House and the injury of US President Barack Obama. Within seconds, US financial markets dropped by about 1%.