Linus Tech Tips (LTT), a prominent tech channel, encountered a significant security breach on 12 August 2024, when its official X (formerly Twitter) account was hacked.
The incident swiftly gained attention on social media, with users on the r/LinusTechTips subreddit sharing screenshots of suspicious tweets from the compromised account.
These unauthorised posts promoted a fraudulent offer, claiming to sell MacBook Pros for £600 each, complete with free shipping and a signature from Linus himself. The tweets also falsely stated that all proceeds would go to charity, further enticing followers.
The scam appeared more credible with an accompanying photo featuring an Apple MacBook Pro and an iPhone displaying the Linus Tech Tips official X account.
Linus Tech Tips Twitter account got hacked and the account is being used to get your payment information. pic.twitter.com/0YGYU4Nj7W
— Damaged Sector (@DamagedSector) August 11, 2024
Linus Sebastian, the founder of Linus Tech Tips, promptly confirmed the breach on his personal accounts, alerting his followers and the wider community.
**BEWARE** The main LTT Twitter account has been hijacked.
— Linus LinusMediaGroup (@linusgsebastian) August 11, 2024
4 minutes after I received this email I tried to log in, but the password had already been changed. By the time I could update the password, the 2FA had been deactivated/reactivated.
I have contacted Twitter support. pic.twitter.com/H5YCMfBxy2
He explained how, minutes after receiving an email notification, he attempted to regain control of the account, but the hackers had already changed the password and tampered with the two-factor authentication (2FA), effectively locking him out.
Linus warned his followers not to engage with the scam posts and criticised X’s security measures, suggesting that compromised accounts should be locked down immediately to prevent further issues. The timeline for regaining full control of the account remains uncertain.
Account appears to be locked down now (attached update from Luke)
— Linus LinusMediaGroup (@linusgsebastian) August 12, 2024
I'm not happy with the process, but I am grateful to everyone at Twitter who had better things to do on a Sunday and got this taken care of. pic.twitter.com/XXkl1bK5nn
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