BBC Weather Twitter Account Hacked With Anti-Semitic Tweets; Pro-Syria Group Claims Responsibility [PHOTOS]
The BBC’s Weather Twitter account was hacked Thursday.
The eight tweets have an anti-Semitic slant and have since been deleted, Twitchy reports. On Twitter, pro-Syria group Syrian Electronic Army has claimed responsibility for the hack, the BBC reports.
The tweets appear to be random but are all based in political issues in the Middle East:
“Tsunami alert for Haifa: Residents are advised to return to Poland,” the account tweeted to its 60,000 followers about the seaside Israeli city.
BBC Arabic’s Twitter account was apparently hacked as well, Twitchy reports.
In an email statment made to IBTimes, BBC spokeswoman Francesca Sostero said, "We are aware that in the past few hours several BBC Twitter accounts have been hacked. We are actively working on this and expect it to be resolved shortly.”
Conservative followers see the hack as a sign of the news organization’s alleged liberal bias:
The BBC is one of many corporations to have suffered from a social media hijacking. Jeep, Burger King and even Twitter itself have faced security violations that compromise its users.
Computing professor Alan Woodward said he understands the appeal of hacking the BBC’s handle.
"The BBC is an obvious place to attack as it a trusted brand, and so anyone who wishes to broadcast a message can reach a audience that are likely to pay attention, certainly initially," he told the BBC.
© Copyright IBTimes 2024. All rights reserved.