Tech & Biz

Phishers Jack Twitter Accounts

by Jordan Yerman | March 9, 2009 at 06:38 am

213 views | 57 Recommendations | 9 comments

Over 750 Twitter users got their accounts hacked by following a spam link to a phishing site. You'd think that the Twitterati would be a bit more switched on, but I guess the lure of a "23-year-old with webcam" was just too strong.

It's 2009. We should all be on the same page: random chicks do not somehow find you over the Internet, decide you're hot, and then invite you for private chats. Really. If you're thinking of clicking that link... don't.

Click the link and you end up on an "adult" site that both attempts to phish your credit-card info and slathers your computer with ads for the same stuff.

Hundreds of twitter accounts are being compromised and tweets are being posted encouraging users to make the accquaintance of a 23 year old female with a webcam…

Twitter offers a password strength indicator to help you choose a strong password when you sign up. If you want to change your password now you can do that here. Also, avoid sharing your password with folks or services you don't feel you can trust.

... And if you think you can trust a 23-year-old with a webcam, well, you'll be singing the blues, my friend. Singing the blues.

0 See all footage | View Slideshow

Share: email story | add to any | | facebook | stumbleupon

recommend This comment thread is now closed

Karen Hatter

at 07:26 on March 9th, 2009

All for the promise of a cyber hook-up ....!

Amazing!

generaldecay

at 11:52 on March 9th, 2009

Teenage boys will do anything! ;)

mtammas

at 09:30 on March 9th, 2009

Great story! What's that country song lyric -- "I'm so much cooler online."

zeet

at 11:16 on March 9th, 2009

Amazing! See how many things can go wrong when you start switching words that start with "F" to "PH"?

Fishing is relaxing and totally harmless - and no 23-old's with web cams are allowed...

Swan

at 11:51 on March 9th, 2009

I'll bet that porn has more allure than the news, the weather, sports scores, soapies and reruns all put together. Millions will fall for phishing scams, because they just cannot help themselves - the link they choose to click is (to them,) just too good to pass up.

Will they learn, probably not.

Good story Jordan and a timely warning for all.
~ Swan

generaldecay

at 11:53 on March 9th, 2009

You know, I've developed an unnatural (and perhaps unhealthy) hatred of twitter. I don't know what it is but I CANNOT STAND IT. CANNOT!

zeet

at 13:14 on March 9th, 2009

I know exactly what you mean!
Twitter is not discussion, debate, talk......it's merely.....twit.
Can't stand twitting.

generaldecay

at 00:09 on March 10th, 2009

Exactly! And I was just saying, I have very few friends on my twitter account (which I never update) but between them they managed to make 200 updates in three days recently. Unbelievable. I've not been back since!

eastvanray

at 14:37 on March 9th, 2009

Serves those dumbasses right. If you have no common sense then no amount of "tech savvy" will do you much good in life. A little thinning out of the "connected" heard would not be such a bad thing anyway.