Microsoft's X Account Hijacked to Promote Clippy Cryptocurrency Scam
Microsoft's official X account was briefly hijacked by cybercriminals who used it to promote a cryptocurrency scam centered around the infamous Clippy assistant. The attackers created a fake Clippy X account, @ClippyMSFTCo, and posted a call to action asking Microsoft to bring Clippy back. They then hijacked Microsoft's account and retweeted the post to its 13 million followers.
The scam took a bizarre turn when the fraudsters posted a fake apology on Microsoft's account, claiming that the company had not authorized the cryptocurrency token associated with Clippy. This post was later deleted. The fraudulent @ClippyMSFTCo account was eventually disabled, but researchers later found another account, @ClippyMSFT, still promoting the $CLIPPY token.
Microsoft confirmed the unauthorized access and stated that the account had been secured and the unauthorized posts removed. The company is continuing to investigate the incident. The scam highlights the risks of meme coins, which are often short-lived and can be used to extract value from unsuspecting investors.