Users of twitter have been scammed by attackers who took control of well-known people such as Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. Within 30 minutes, the attackers were supposedly able to gain over £80,000. This was shut down quickly, but a lot of damage had been done. There are 2 issues raised here: Security of twitter and awareness of social engineering by users.
If all users were aware of the social engineering scams that ask for money before you get money, these tweets could have raised red flags for all of them. For those who are unaware, here is some advice for spotting these scams:
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is (i.e. Getting money for minimal work by a person who you likely have never met).
- If they ask for money from you to get a bigger reward, it is most likely a scam (I’m not aware of ANY case where it isn’t).
- When you get a message that raises your emotions and expects you to take action, wait 90 seconds and then read it again. You’ll have a clearer head before you make a decision.
Source: BBC