Microsoft’s X account was hacked yesterday to promote Clippy-themed cryptocurrency.
As The Verge reports, the @Microsoft account, which has 13 million followers, reposted a tweet from a Clippy crypto account, changed its profile image to feature Clippy, and then posted a message saying it would bring Clippy back if it got 500,000 likes.
The account later posted an odd tweet apologizing for the Clippy-related messages. “To be clear, Microsoft does not support, endorse, sponsor, or authorize any cryptocurrency or crypto-related token,” it said. “We are taking this matter seriously and will pursue appropriate legal action to have the unauthorized token and related materials removed.”
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
The tweets were later deleted, while Clippy has been removed from the profile image. Microsoft says the “apology” tweet did not come from the company.
“We have confirmed unauthorized access to our account on X, including posts that did not originate from Microsoft,” a Microsoft spokesperson tells PCMag. “The account has been secured, the unauthorized posts have been removed, and we are continuing to investigate the circumstances.”
In an era of AI going rogue to hack third-party sites, an X account takeover to push crypto scams seems almost old-school. Remember when a teenager hacked the accounts of President Obama, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and others to encourage the public to donate Bitcoin to a digital wallet? (He later got a three-year sentence.) Or when someone used a SIM-swap attack to hack the SEC account to push Bitcoin ETFs (Exchange-Traded funds)? (That guy got 14 months.)
This isn’t even the first time a Microsoft X account has been compromised. As Bleeping Computer notes, crypto scammers hacked @MicrosoftIndia in 2024 to infect people with cryptocurrency wallet-drainer malware.
Recommended by Our Editors
Clippy, meanwhile, retired in 2007, but Microsoft tried to revive it last year via an anthropomorphic computer buddy named Mico. Less than a year later, the company demoted its blob-like character from the Copilot app.
Editors’ Note: This story was updated with a comment from Microsoft.
About Our Expert
Jon Martindale
Contributor
Experience
Jon Martindale is a tech journalist from the UK, with 20 years of experience covering all manner of PC components and associated gadgets. He’s written for a range of publications, including ExtremeTech, Digital Trends, Forbes, U.S. News & World Report, and Lifewire, among others. When not writing, he’s a big board gamer and reader, with a particular habit of speed-reading through long manga sagas.
Jon covers the latest PC components, as well as how-to guides on everything from how to take a screenshot to how to set up your cryptocurrency wallet. He particularly enjoys the battles between the top tech giants in CPUs and GPUs, and tries his best not to take sides.
Jon’s gaming PC is built around the iconic 7950X3D CPU, with a 7900XTX backing it up. That’s all the power he needs to play lightweight indie and casual games, as well as more demanding sim titles like Kerbal Space Program. He uses a pair of Jabra Active 8 earbuds and a SteelSeries Arctis Pro wireless headset, and types all day on a Logitech G915 mechanical keyboard.
Click Here For The Original Source.
