An estimated 7,000 fans clicked on the links and received a virus rather than an iPad, according to Techcrunch.com. Lady Gaga acknowledged the hack in a tweet sent out this week.
In addition, singer Nelly Furtado’s website was also hacked; a free Macbook was offered to her fans, according to Techcrunch.
These incidents reflect a growing trend of hackers using celebrities’ Twitter and Facebook accounts to scam fans, noted Raj Samani, chief technology officer of McAfee EMEA. “Cybercriminals often use popular celebrities as a tool to lure consumers to sites that are laden with malicious software. As a result, consumers should remain particularly aware of any malicious content hiding in ‘tiny places’ like shortened URLs that can spread virally in social networking sites, or through emails and text messages from friends”, he said.
Samani recommended that consumers be “extra vigilant when reviewing and responding to special offers online, watch out for too-good-to-be-true promotions on social networks, and never agree to reveal personal information to participate in a competition.”