In yet another disturbing incident of digital hacking, the official account X of Elmo – the famous character from the Sesame Street series – was hacked and published anti-Semitic and racist posts. The account, which has more than 650,000 followers, published a series of extreme messages in a matter of minutes , causing an outcry and immediate mobilization of the platform’s administrators.
Hate messages & political innuendo
Posts that temporarily appeared on Elmo's profile included:
- calls for the "extermination" of Jews,
- offensive references to US President Donald Trump,
- as well as requests for the release of "secret files" related to Jeffrey Epstein - who had been accused of sex crimes.
See also: Bitcoin Depot: Data Breach Affects 27,000 Customers
One of the posts urged Trump to "RELEASE THE FILES," fueling rumors of a cover-up by the FBI and the Department of Justice.
Technological responsibility & security weaknesses in X
Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organization behind Sesame Street, confirmed the account was hacked and called the posted messages “disgusting” and “racist.” According to their statement:
"Elmo's X account has been compromised by an unknown hacker. We are working to gain control of the account.".
The incident once again highlights the serious cybersecurity gaps on the X platform , especially when it comes to protecting verified and public accounts . The breach occurred just days after X CEO Linda Yaccarino resigned , and while Elon Musk is facing intense criticism for the increase in anti-Semitic and toxic content on the network . Additionally, X’s AI chatbot, known as Grok , recently came under fire from users after it made positive comments about Hitler — a worrying AI moderation failure.
See also: Unpatched Ruckus flaws allow breach
Increase in account breach incidents since last year
Action Fraud UK recorded more than 35,000 reports of social media and email account breaches last year. Authorities are advising users to:
- use strong and unique passwords,
- enable multi-factor authentication (2FA),
- and avoid using the same password on multiple platforms.
The digital identity of children's brands at risk
The breach of Elmo's X account is even more serious because of the nature of the account: Elmo is an iconic children's figure, a symbol of kindness and learning since the 1980s. His presence on X functions primarily as a means of entertainment and communication with young audiences and parents. In fact, in 2024 he went viral thanks to a post with the simple phrase: "How are you all?", which gathered tens of thousands of responses from users who expressed their frustration with the world around them.
This particular attack undermines not only trust in X, but also the public image of organizations that target children, who are inevitably exposed to these attacks through contact with the platform.
See also: Taiwan flags Chinese apps for security breaches
What should we keep:
- Breaches even on verified accounts show that no digital identity is completely secure.
- X is called upon to upgrade its moderation and cybersecurity policies, especially when hosting content aimed at minors or child-oriented brands.
- Users should be particularly wary of posts appearing on well-known accounts and report suspicious content immediately.
- The tech community must continue to push for transparency, automated threat detection , and stricter authentication measures on social platforms.
Source: www.bbc.com
🔒 Protect your privacy with Proton VPN
Swiss VPN from the creators of Proton Mail — strict no-logs policy, strong encryption, and built-in NetShield that blocks ads, trackers, & malware.
- ✔ No-logs, based in Switzerland (except 14-Eyes)
- ✔ NetShield: blocks ads, trackers & malicious domains
- ✔ Covers all devices — free version available
The link is an affiliate link — SecNews may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. It does not affect the independence of our article writing.
