Symantec’s website has reported that more than 2500 Twitter accounts have been compromised to tweet links to websites whose expertise lies in adult dating and sex content. The attackers have also altered users’ profile pictures, biography and full name to further promote these sites, and keep in mind that these attackers are not just doing this for the sake of fun, because according to Symantec, these hackers are believed to have earned US $4.00 for each person who signed up by redirecting the victims through affiliate programs. Hackers normally adopt an unusual trick to get things done, and on this occasion, they opted not to tweet or directly message other users, but instead used the compromised accounts to simply like tweets and follow others under the assumption that they will be curious enough to click on the affected profile and take a sneak peek. Using this clever and calculated approach, several users were met with tweets that claim to offer free sign-ups to the sexually orientated content with shortened links that eventually lead to the full site via an intermediate landing page. According to the findings of Symantec, nearly almost three-quarters of the compromised accounts were created at least four years ago. According to Infosecurity Chris Boyd, malware intelligence analyst at Malwarebytes, attacks on social media accounts have become a daily occurrence, with countless incidents striking the microblogging website Twitter. Boyd has advised severely that social media users should immediately disable connections to services they no longer use, as they should be under the impression that such services present a security risk. Additionally, using a reputable malware program will also go a long way in removing unwanted items from the storage of their machine.
