The news about the intrusion on Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's private e-mail account quickly became front page material, raising a general concern about the security of potentially vital online information.

The hacker, known as Rubico, managed to access Palin’s Yahoo account by changing the password, then went through her e-mails and posted all these details on a popular tech discussion website, 4chan.org. The post was viewed by many visitors who also accessed her account, uploading several personal photos and also some of her personal messages for everyone to see.

Rubico also explained the way he managed to gain access to the account. He claims it only took him 45 minutes to reset the password, simply by using the governor’s birth date, ZIP code and some data about where she met her husband. "I found out later though [sic] more research that they met at high school, so I did variations of that, high, high school, eventually hit on 'Wasilla high,'" he wrote. All these details were obtained using Google searches and the truth is that most accounts can be easily hacked using this method, once the attacker gains access to some basic information. He concluded that there was nothing incriminating in the e-mails, as he hoped to find certain information that would "derail her campaign."

Some believe that the access procedure has a different explanation, as Yahoo’s page is designed to send the password reset to a secondary e-mail account, in order to avoid such intrusions. Others believe that it is indeed plausible and that a person in her position should have better secured her personal page.

Yahoo did not comment on the security features of its free e-mail service and the only thing stated by its spokeswoman Kelley Benander was that: "We don't comment on the specifics of our security policies so that we don't give a roadmap to hackers and bad actors." The company offers certain options for an improved security, but there are very few people actually taking the time to understand the features and register to use them. Of course, from this moment on, many might consider giving it a chance and the FAQ section will probably soon include several answers for these security concerns.

The matter is even worse for Palin, who even before being selected as a vice presidential candidate, was criticized for using her personal e-mail instead of the government account to conduct state business, raising many concerns about the safety of these matters.

The authorities are currently investigating the matter and new details about their progress should arrive over the next few days. The incident, even though it was initially meant as a prank, escaladed to much more and at this point is one of the hottest topics in the media. Presidential candidates are used to having their lives out into the open but this is definitely taking it too far. A certain amount of privacy should be allowed and respected for every single person, no matter their profession and activity.