Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/17/axlrose_twitter_hack/
Hacked Axl Rose Twitter account spreads false tour news
GNR frontman relaxed about hack
Posted in Security, 17th August 2010 11:23 GMT
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Axl Rose's Twitter account was hacked on Sunday to spread false rumours that Guns N' Roses was cancelling an upcoming European tour.
Fans retweeted the message [1], which remains as the most recent post in the verified but little used axlrose Twitter feed. However a spokesman for the group confirmed that the autumn tour [2] remains very much on.
It seems Axl is too busy doing proper Rock 'n Roll stuff - trashing hotel rooms, helping groupies to make plaster casts of his intimate parts, getting wasted etc. - to worry about an erroneous social media update, a refreshing relaxed attitude in the Web 2.0 era.
It's unclear who actually controls the profile at present, which was likely hacked by a password guessing or perhaps password reset attack. Many other celebs including Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, British politician Ed Miliband have previously fallen victim [3] to Twitter hackers.
Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the musical spectrum, annoying teen warbler Justin Bieber has invited his 4.5 million followers to prank call someone he blames for hacking a friend's Twitter account. Bieber allegedly published Kevin Kristopik's mobile number in a now deleted message that said "Everyone call me [phone number removed] :) or text."
Doubtless thousands of excitable Bieber fans subsequently rang or texted the number, prompting Kristopik to respond via a now deleted Twitter account that "I never asked for it, @justinbieber is a dick."
NME has more on the whole unedifying episode here [4]. ®