Joe Biden, Bill Gates, Elon Musk, other Twitter accounts hacked in Bitcoin scam
Washington: Unidentified hackers broke into the Twitter accounts of technology moguls, politicians, celebrities and major companies Wednesday in an apparent Bitcoin scam.
The ruse included bogus tweets from former President Barack Obama, Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden, Mike Bloomberg and a number of tech billionaires including Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Celebrities Kanye West and his wife, Kim Kardashian West, were also hacked. The fake tweets offered to send USD 2,000 for every USD 1,000 sent to an anonymous Bitcoin address.
There is no evidence that the owners of these accounts were targeted themselves. Instead, the hacks appeared designed to lure their Twitter followers into sending money to an anonymous Bitcoin account.
The Biden campaign, for instance, said that Twitter's integrity team locked down the account within a few minutes of the breach and removed the related tweet.
Obama's office had no immediate comment. The FBI said it was aware of Twitter's security breach, but declined further comment.
In a tweet, Twitter noted that it was aware of a security incident impacting accounts on Twitter. The San Francisco company said it is investigating and promised an update shortly. It did not reply immediately to requests for comment.
The apparently fake tweets were all quickly deleted, although The Associated Press was able to capture screenshots of several before they disappeared. The security problem was severe enough for Twitter to warn that many of its more than 166 million daily users might be unable to tweet or reset their passwords while the company tried to lock things down.
Among the political figures targeted, the hack mostly appeared to target Democrats or other figures on the left, drawing comparisons to the 2016 campaign.
US intelligence agencies established that Russia engaged in coordinated attempts to interfere in those U.S. elections through social media tampering and various hacks, including targeting the various campaigns and major party organisations.
The hack might also be a simple demonstration of Twitter's weak security controls as the U.S. heads into the 2020 presidential election, a contest in which the service is likely to play an influential role.
The Bitcoin account mentioned in the fake tweets appears to have been created on Wednesday. By the end of the day, it had received almost 12.9 bitcoins, an amount currently valued at slightly more than 114,000. At some point during the day, roughly half that sum in bitcoin was withdrawn from the account.
Bezos, Gates and Musk are among the 10 richest people in the world, with tens of millions of followers on Twitter. The three men are worth a combined 362 billion, according to the latest calculations by Forbes magazine.
The same bogus offer cropped up a second time on Musk's account, which has a history of sometimes befuddling tweets from the eccentric billionaire. Tesla didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Gates, who has become one of the world's leading philanthropists since stepping down as Microsoft CEO, confirmed the tweet wasn't from him. This appears to be part of a larger issue that Twitter is facing," a spokesperson for the billionaire said in a statement.
This is hardly the first time hackers have created mischief on Twitter. Just last year, the account of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey was broken into a nd used to tweet racist and vulgar comments.
The latest security breach prompted Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, to send a letter to Dorsey urging him to work with the FBI and the Justice Department on ways to improve Twitter's security.
A successful attack on your system's servers represents a threat to all of your users' privacy and data security," Hawley wrote.
Investors also appeared to be concerned about potential fallout from the hack affecting Twitter's usage. Twitter's shares fell 3% in extended trading after news of the hack broke.
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CM Siddaramaiah ready to "sacrifice power" or continue, as per Rahul's directions: Rajanna
Bengaluru (PTI): As the speculation about leadership change in Karnataka rages yet again, a senior party leader and close aide of Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the Chief Minister was ready to "sacrifice power" or continue in the top post, based on the directions of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
KN Rajanna also seemed to support the idea of a change in the party leadership as well, an apparent reference to deputy CM and Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar, whose supporters want him to be made CM.
Urging the Congress high command to clear the confusion on the leadership issue, Rajanna, a former minister who is considered close to Siddaramaiah, warned that continued uncertainty would be detrimental for the party and governance.
He also insisted that if the chief minister is changed, there should be a "Dalit CM" in Karnataka.
The development comes amid speculations within the party and political circles about a possible decision on leadership change and cabinet reshuffle after May 4, once the results for assembly elections in four states and one union territory, along with bypolls to two assembly segments in Karnataka, are announced.
"The Chief Minister has an open mind and has said he will abide by the directions of the high command and Rahul Gandhi, and that everyone should cooperate. The CM has repeatedly reiterated that he will abide by Rahul Gandhi's directives and suggested that everyone follow the decision. All ministers have agreed to it," Rajanna said in response to a question about the CM's recent discussion with his close cabinet colleagues and MLAs.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, "power is not permanent for any politician, those who lose it will try to gain it and those who have gained it will try to maintain it. The CM's mindset is that he is ready to sacrifice power or continue in power as per Rahul Gandhi's directions. He will abide by Rahul Gandhi's decision."
When asked whether supporters of Siddaramaiah demanded that he continue as CM, and if he steps down, that an AHINDA leader should take over, the MLA said the matter is for the high command to decide.
"We have told the high command what we had to. Ultimately it is left to high command and Rahul Gandhi," he said.
AHINDA (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes, and Dalits) is considered as the strong support base of Siddaramaiah and also the Congress party.
When asked about his past statement that there should be a Dalit CM after Siddaramaiah, Rajanna said, "What's wrong with it. I am committed to the statement that there should be a Dalit CM."
MLAs and leaders who want Shivakumar to be elevated have recently claimed they expect some "sweet news" by May 15, which is their leader's birthday.
When asked whether the party president should also be changed, the former minister said that everything has to change.
"If the ministers have to change, why shouldn't the party president. Everything will be decided by high command," he said.
Shivakumar is the state Congress President and has completed six years in the post.
For the government to function more actively towards the welfare of the people it is important that the high command clears the existing confusion in the Congress party at the earliest, Rajanna said, adding, the ministers have gone to discuss the same with the leadership.
"I too urge that the high command should not allow the confusion to continue; as long as the confusion continues, it is detrimental for the party and governance. I will also go to Delhi after May 4," he said.
"The high command is at it (resolving the confusion), but because of elections, the leaders are busy. The matter cannot be decided hastily, it must be decided with a clear state of mind, as it involves the future of the people of Karnataka and the party," he said, expressing confidence that the party will take appropriate decisions after examining all aspects.
PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi on Monday met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and General Secretary (in charge of Karnataka) Randeep Surjewala in New Delhi and requested them to address the speculation regarding the change of leadership in the state.
Subsequently Social Welfare Minister H C Mahadevappa too met the party leadership in Delhi.
Both Jarkiholi and Mahadevappa are considered close to Siddaramaiah.
Regarding the demand for cabinet reshuffle, Rajanna said there is an expectation within both the party and the public that the administration should be sensitised more, and there is nothing wrong in new people getting opportunities.
Responding to a question, Rajanna said, there is a feeling among AHINDA communities that their expectations from the current government have not been fulfilled. "I too agree with it," he said.
Rajanna, who recently alleged that the Chief Minister is "helpless" and under some "compulsion," reiterated his statement by saying, "compare Siddaramaiah as CM during 2013-18 and 2023 to now, there is a huge difference, people are saying it."
The leadership issue is being hotly debated as Shivakumar's supporters have been demanding his elevation since late 2025, in lines with a rumoured power-sharing agreement involving Siddaramaiah when the party won the 2023 Assembly elections.
