Hackers Use Google to Break Into Palin's Email Account

Governor Sarah Palin and indeed the republican party was left a little red in the face earlier this week when someone hacked her email account. Today we figure Palin is turning a violent shade of purple as details emerge about how easy it was for hackers to access her emails.

After her account was hacked and the contents published on Wikileaks, it became apparent that Palin was using her personal Yahoo ! account to conduct government business.

With alleged subject titles for received and sent emails including, “FW : Motor Fuel Tax Suspension,” “FW : CONFIDENTIAL Ethics Matter,” “Draft letter to Governor Schwarzenegger / Container Tax,” “RE : Using Royalty Oil to Lower the Cost of Fuel for Alaskans,” “Court of Appeals / Executive Director Parole Board / Boards and Commissions” and our personal favorite, “FW : DPS Personnel and Budget Issues,” (DPS Being Department of Public Safety, which happens to be in charge of Alaskan State Troopers) the public is rightly concerned about how tight security is regarding the communication of sensitive matters.

The hack was easy. So very, very easy. Many people think of hackers as people crouched over their computers for hours, busily trying to crack codes and passwords. This was not the case. Tip one, if you’re going to conduct official government business using "sarah.gov@yahoo.com" you might want to make sure your personal details and the answer to your “secret” security question aren’t readily available on Google.

The hacker reset Palin’s password using her birthday, ZIP code and the fact that she met her husband while in high school, something that is now common knowledge following the revelation that Palin’s own pregnant teenage daughter will be marrying her high school boyfriend.

The individual behind the incident has not yet been identified and the FBI and Secret Service are conducting an investigation into the incident.