Microsoft's X account hijacked to promote crypto coin; UK email and social account hacking losses rise 417%
Episode 487 of the Smashing Security podcast covers the hijacking of Microsoft's official X (Twitter) account, which has 13 million followers. The attackers used a Clippy theme to promote a dubious crypto coin, and a corporate apology that circulated was not from Microsoft either. There was no ransomware or data theft. The episode also covers a 417% rise in UK losses from hacked email and social media accounts, where scammers pose as friends to sell tickets to gigs that don't exist. It also references news that South Korean officials believe AI agents were used to hack several banks, that Asos warned customer data may be compromised after 'unauthorised' app access, and a story on PixelLeak, an AI exposure of private developer data.
Technical Details
- The Microsoft X account takeover was used for crypto scam promotion; the article does not state how the account was compromised.
- The UK fraud pattern involves impersonating friends via compromised email and social media accounts to sell fake event tickets.
- The article only links to the South Korea, Asos and PixelLeak stories and gives no technical detail on them.
Remediation
- The City of London Police / Report Fraud warning cited in the show notes advises switching to passkeys to protect email and social media accounts.
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Microsoft's X account hijacked to promote crypto coin; UK email and social account hacking losses rise 417%
ler a análise desta fonte ocultar
Episode 487 of the Smashing Security podcast covers the hijacking of Microsoft's official X (Twitter) account, which has 13 million followers. The attackers used a Clippy theme to promote a dubious crypto coin, and a corporate apology that circulated was not from Microsoft either. There was no ransomware or data theft. The episode also covers a 417% rise in UK losses from hacked email and social media accounts, where scammers pose as friends to sell tickets to gigs that don't exist. It also references news that South Korean officials believe AI agents were used to hack several banks, that Asos warned customer data may be compromised after 'unauthorised' app access, and a story on PixelLeak, an AI exposure of private developer data.
Technical Details
- The Microsoft X account takeover was used for crypto scam promotion; the article does not state how the account was compromised.
- The UK fraud pattern involves impersonating friends via compromised email and social media accounts to sell fake event tickets.
- The article only links to the South Korea, Asos and PixelLeak stories and gives no technical detail on them.
Remediation
- The City of London Police / Report Fraud warning cited in the show notes advises switching to passkeys to protect email and social media accounts.