The Hidden Dangers in Your Phone Number

View Apart/Shutterstock.com

Using your phone as an authenticator can be a problem.

Identity theft isn’t usually something that keeps people up at night. It should, argues the former Atlantic writer Taylor Lorenz: “You don’t ever worry about it until it happens to you.”

In a new episode of The Idea File, Lorenz explains how giving out your phone number could lead to a devastating hack—even when your phone is sitting in your pocket. She also offers guidance on how to better inoculate yourself against exposing sensitive personal data.

NEXT STORY: Jim Langevin's view from the Hill