John McAfee may be a security expert, but hackers have proven he's not infallible.
On Wednesday, the man tweeted that his Twitter account was compromised, adding in a subsequent post that he has "no control" over security on the platform. McAfee told BBC he knew his phone had been compromised when he saw an alert on it that read, "SIM not provisioned MM #2."
Urgent: My account was hacked. Twitter has been notified. The coin of the day tweet was not me. As you all know... I am not doing a coin of the day anymore!!!!
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) December 27, 2017
Though I am a security expert, I have no control over Twitter's security. I have haters. I am a target. People make fake accounts, fake screenshots, fake claims. I am a target for hackers who lost money and blame me. Please take responsibility for yourselves. Adults only please.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) December 28, 2017
The perpetrators had used McAfee's account to promote lesser known cryptocurrencies, recommending them in rapid, successive posts, according to BBC. McAfee -- an expert on cryptocurrencies -- recommends a "coin of the day" to his followers that usually increases in value after his endorsement.
The posts were allegedly written by the hackers, which BBC said are now deleted, came after McAfee said he would reduce his recommendations to a weekly basis. His next pick is due on Jan. 1.
McAfee's claims come after he announced in April that he intends to build the "world's first truly private smartphone," which he says will be the "most hack-proof smartphone" ever made. Other security experts jumped on the chance to make fun of him, including Marcus Hutchins (better known as MalwareTech), the 23-year-old who briefly slowed the WannaCry attack this year.
It baffles me how a guy who tweeted high resolution photos of his own passport could get hacked.https://t.co/SvRwC2htqq
— MalwareTech (@MalwareTechBlog) December 27, 2017
John McAfee does seem to have the worst luck... https://t.co/DmFwlwbs6c
— Graham Cluley (@gcluley) December 28, 2017
Some expressed skepticism about McAfee's account being hacked, and several users highlighted he hasn't been the most credible person online. In one example, McAfee tweeted he doesn't have an Instagram account although it was announced on his Twitter account that he opened one last January. He said the post was written by a rogue employee with ill intentions.
Can’t believe McAfee has been hacked. Aren’t you a security expert?
— Fight Goddess (@fight_goddess) December 27, 2017
So convenient for you to get your account back so quickly..
— Giovanni (@giovanni_tc) December 27, 2017
One can only sit and speculate after reading this incident. I find it hard to believe you actually were victimized like this. After following you for so many years (your success and story) it sounds almost like an internal job. I mean no disrespect.
— Shaun M.® (@_ShaunM) December 28, 2017
Neither Twitter nor McAfee responded to requests for comments.
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