Facebook has announced that it will now alert users if it strongly suspects that an account is being targeted by a hacker working for a nation state.
The notification that will appear on desktop version of Facebook will prompt users to turn on “Login Approvals,” which requires them to enter a security code sent by Facebook in order to log in. The message also encourages users to secure their other online accounts. After enabling the Login Approvals, a security code will be sent to your phone each time your account is accessed from a new device or browser. You (or the person trying to access your account) will need to enter that code to gain entry, offering an extra layer of security.
“While we have always taken steps to secure accounts that we believe to have been compromised, we decided to show this additional warning if we have a strong suspicion that an attack could be government-sponsored. We do this because these types of attacks tend to be more advanced and dangerous than others, and we strongly encourage affected people to take the actions necessary to secure all of their online accounts.”
posted Alex Stamos is the Chief Security Officer at Facebook in a blog.
Facebook says that if a user sees this notification, it’s not an indication that Facebook itself has been hacked in any way. It did not disclose how exactly it knows when an account is target of unauthorised government surveillance an said that it has to “protect the integrity” of its methods. The latest move from the social network comes after Google in 2012 started offering the same and later warned thousands of users that their accounts may have been compromised by state-sponsored attacks.