{
  "id": 12193877,
  "title": "Hackers hijacked Microsoft's X account for a scam featuring everyone's least-favorite tech mascot Clippy",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/hackers-hijacked-microsofts-x-account-for-a-scam-featuring-everyones",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-05T17:05:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TechRadar",
    "slug": "techradar",
    "url": "https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/hackers-hijacked-microsofts-x-account-for-a-scam-featuring-everyones-least-favorite-tech-mascot-clippy"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Hackers gained unauthorized access to Microsoft's X account and used it to promote a cryptocurrency token called $CLIPPY. To further deceive potential victims, the attackers created a fake Clippy account and posted a call for likes, then retweeted it from Microsoft's official X account. Subsequently, Microsoft removed the fraudulent posts and secured their account. The cybercriminals further attempted to cover their tracks by issuing a fabricated public apology stating that Microsoft had not authorized the promotion of any cryptocurrency token related to their brand. Despite the account being disabled, researchers discovered another account, @ClippyMSFT, still promoting the $CLIPPY token. This account claimed to have a liquidity pool paired with $MSFT, raising concerns about potential malware distribution. Microsoft confirmed the unauthorized access and removal of the fraudulent posts, and is currently investigating the incident.",
  "summary": "Microsoft's X account was used to promote a meme coin scam, and possibly even to distribute malware.",
  "key_points": [
    "Hackers accessed Microsoft's X account without permission.",
    "Attackers promoted $CLIPPY token and fake Clippy account.",
    "Microsoft removed fraudulent posts and investigated incident."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}