After Twitter’s CEO and founder Jack Dorsey’s Twitter account got hacked, it should dawn on the world that we are just one Twitter hack away from a devasting political, socio-economic, or even military disaster. Imagine if someone hacked Trump’s account.  One of his famous tweetstorms could read like this,”  I have hereby ordered American’s strategic nuclear forces to respond to an all attack by China’s nuclear arsenal on the United States. Take shelter immediately.  We will win this war, God Bless The United States of America. This is your president tweeting from Airforce One.

Think this is outlandish? Think again.

The following news organizations are already writing about it.

https://www.businessinsider.com/why-hacking-jack-dorsey-twitter-account-terrifying-2019-8

https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/31/tech/twitter-security-jack-dorsey-hack/index.html

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. This has happened before. In 2013  According to the Financial Times,  one tweet sent shock waves through the stock market — causing the S&P 500 to decline 0.9% — enough to wipe out $130 billion in stock value in a matter of seconds. The market quickly recovered that value, but the breakneck pace at which the stock market tumbled reminded many people of the infamous 2010 “flash crash,” or last year’s crisis at Knight Capital Management, in which a computer glitch cost the firm $440 million and nearly sent it into bankruptcy.

Today Twitter is more important than ever and growing in importance. President Trump and other world leaders, business leaders, and politicians of all stripes regularly depend on Twitter to disseminate positions and policy changes as its first directive, not a supplemental one.  Two Fridays ago Trump tweeted that he was raising tariffs on China and “Our great American companies are hereby ordered to immediately start looking for an alternative to China, including bringing our companies HOME and making your products in the USA.”.  The market swooned 800 points within minutes.

Can you imagine the chaos a hacked tweet from the President of the United States, “Take shelter immediately.  China has launched an all-out nuclear first strike on our Country and we are responding with overwhelming and devasting force.  This is your President and Commander in Chief from Airforce One. Gold Bless America.”

The stock market crashes, panic in the streets only to find out minutes or hours later this is a fake tweet, a hacked account. People that took body blows from selling out on the panic realize they’ve lost their life savings as the market quickly rebounds as the market rebounds to prior levels but sellers are left holding the empty bag.