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Comment by jimbob45 | Hacker News Reader

I don’t like this article because it omits some crucial details that could lead readers down a specific path of thinking.

It’s unclear if the inside men, Alzabarah or Abouammo, are living on H-1Bs, full American citizens, or are in the process of immigrating. Depending on the answer to that question, Twitter may need to block the employment of immigrants or citizens to stop this sort of industrial sabotage in the future. Otherwise, every country will try to have their own inside man and Twitter will be forced to overdedicate resources to countering them.

If they’d made his citizenship status clear, the solution would be far clearer to readers.

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This does not feel very important to me. Twitter will need to focus on their process, not their people.

> If they’d made his citizenship status clear, the solution would be far clearer to readers.

This is a complicated problem. I don't think encouraging readers to imagine that there is a simple solution does anybody any favors.

It says in the article that Abouammo is an Egyptian American, so born in the US.

In what way is passport color a reliable predictor of trustworthiness?

My money is on black. https://www.passportindex.org/byColor.php

Individuals are more likely to want to commit espionage for another state if they were born in or are a citizen of that state.

Individuals are more likely to want to commit espionage when they have money troubles. Why not hire only the already-wealthy?

Individuals are more likely to want to commit espionage when they are tempted with sex. Why not demand evidence of membership in closed religious communities to address that?

On the former, that's absolutely a thing with all sorts of levels to it. Base level is that most companies run background checks including a credit pull. Next level is use of elite academic credentialing, i.e., "we only like to hire from ___".

On the latter, because lol that is not going to have the effect you're looking for.

On the former, I'm quite aware of that. What I'm not aware of is this sort of loyalty screening for low-level employees, as suggested.

On the latter, you're getting closer to the point I'm making.

> Next level is use of elite academic credentialing, i.e., "we only like to hire from ___".

And that's how you get numbered groups like the Cambridge Five

> Depending on the answer to that question, Twitter may need to block the employment of immigrants or citizens to stop this sort of industrial sabotage in the future.

Seems to be a bad test. American citizens left to join ISIS, American citizens have formed cults, American citizens have mailed bombs to people. If a Saudi Arabian prince plopped a Hublot into some random kid's hands and said "give me an email," do you think their patriotism would prevent it? I don't think so, actually, didn't the recent crypto scam involve 2 Americans?

What you're suggesting sounds like some kind of throwing out the baby with the bathwater, but even more nonsensical.

I think a better conclusion is that companies should architect with the assumption that there's a mole, not engage in some kind of border-control nationalist purge.

That's only a bad test if American citizens should be trusted as hires? I think what he was saying is that twitter should avoid Americans and hire h1bs

That way the American government has done some trustworthy checks for you

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