Mark Zuckerberg's social media accounts were attacked over the weekend. Hackers broke into the Facebook CEO's Twitter and Pinterest accounts, proving that even tech giants are vulnerable to security breach.
A group calling themselves OurMine Team managed to hack into Zuckerberg's Twitter and Pinterest accounts over the weekend. The group trolled and vandalized the Facebook CEO's Twitter account, leaving a note that says: "Hey, we are just testing your security, please dm us for contact! Twitter: https://twitter.com/_OurMine_"
Zuckerberg immediately recovered and restored the accounts, rebutting OurMine's tweets on his feed. It was rumoured his Instagram account was also hacked, but it was confirmed yesterday the zuck account is secure.
LinkedIn Dump Cause Of Social Media Hack?
According to a Venture Beat report, OurMine Team claimed the hack was possible because of the LinkedIn password dump that was confirmed a last month, which compromised and leaked millions of user account details online. LinkedIn responded to the leak by voiding the affected users' credentials and by prompting them to change passwords.
It's apparent Zuckerberg used the same or similar passwords for his Twitter and Pinterest accounts, a common habit in many who prefer to keep social media (and email) accounts memorable and consistent. Reusing passwords on different online services is discouraged in spite of its convenience.
Incidents like Zuckerberg's hacked accounts remind users to periodically change login details to all online services, starting with LinkedIn. If the task is too troublesome, it is strongly advised users have different login details (passwords) for their online accounts.
Similar Attacks Over The Weekend
Hackers have a knack for targeting famous personalities' social media accounts, even the user accounts that are rarely used or practically abandoned. Zuckerberg's case is strikingly similar to what happened to Katy Perry, though a link between the two is yet to be established.
Engadget reports that Katy Perry's 89 million Twitter followers were briefly trolled on the performers account, posting vulgar and racist tweets that were immediately removed. A still-active account (@sw4ylol) posted evidence of email screenshots, which included password resets and a takedown notice for a SoundCloud track. The hacker dismissed speculation that the breach was possible because of an old MySpace leak.
