• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents

2

Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich

3

A Trump Account could make your kid a millionaire by 45—but financial experts say the app's projections come with a catch

1

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents

2

Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich

3

A Trump Account could make your kid a millionaire by 45—but financial experts say the app's projections come with a catch
TechChanging Face of Security

Hackers Hijacked the World’s Most Followed Twitter Account

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 31, 2016, 7:46 PM ET
Singer Katy Perry arrives at the 56th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles
Singer Katy Perry arrives at the 56th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California January 26, 2014. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok (UNITED STATES - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT) (GRAMMYS-ARRIVALS) - RTX17W2HPhotograph by Danny Moloshok — Reuters
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Katy Perry, the queen of Twitter in terms of sheer number of followers, lost control of her account on Monday night.

A person (or persons) hijacked the pop singer’s handle, @katyperry, and began posting slurs and nonsense to her 89 million followers. The hackers tweeted messages at rival pop star Taylor Swift (roughly 78 million followers), emoji hand gestures, and a link to an apparently unreleased song called “Witness.”

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

In one tweet, the prankster urged Perry’s followers to follow another account, @sw4ylol. That account, whose operator “sway” claims to based in Romania, appears to have taken credit for the takeover.

https://twitter.com/sw4ylol/status/737733842975490048

Sway also posted a screenshot of what appears to be a copyright takedown notice from SoundCloud, the site where the apparently leaked music track appeared. “We’ve received a report directly from Universal Music Group that your track ‘Witness 1.3’ contains ‘Witness 1.3’ by Katy Perry. As a result, your track has been removed from your profile for the time being.”

Perry has deals with Capital Records, a music label owned by the French-American media conglomerate Universal Music Group (VIVEF). Other musical artists such as Justin Bieber (who is in charge of the second most followed Twitter account at 82 million), Sam Smith, Kanye West, and Selena Gomez have deals with Universal as well.

For more on musical artists, watch:

The Twitter account takeover follows on the heels of other hijackings of public figures’ accounts in recent days, including those of Biz Stone, Twitter co-founder, and Markus Persson (aka “Notch”), creator of the computer game Minecraft, now owned by Microsoft (MSFT).

Security experts advise people—celebrities included—to protect their online accounts with long, strong, and unique passwords; with two-factor authentication, a feature that sends a second code to a device of your choice; and with a general mindset of caution, to evade hackers’ phishing schemes.

The fraudulent tweets posted to Perry’s account have since been scrubbed. The pop star has yet to speak about the incident.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

‘We are driving in the fog’: Hundreds of economists admit they’re flying blind on AI
Economydisruption
‘We are driving in the fog’: Hundreds of economists admit they’re flying blind on AI
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 13, 2026
2 hours ago
Shuman Ghosemajumder
Cybersecuritycyber
Exclusive: Google’s former ‘click fraud czar’ emerges from stealth with an on-device AI shield against AI-powered phishing, deepfakes, and other scams
By Jeremy KahnJuly 13, 2026
3 hours ago
Rocket shortage leaves Europe defenseless in space wars
Europespace
Rocket shortage leaves Europe defenseless in space wars
By Gerry Doyle, Alan Crawford and BloombergJuly 13, 2026
4 hours ago
Millionaires’ playground Marbella wants to become a tech hub
EuropeSpain
Millionaires’ playground Marbella wants to become a tech hub
By Sabrina Nelson Garcinuño and BloombergJuly 13, 2026
5 hours ago
Why corporate strategy is moving to the CFO’s office
AICFO Daily
Why corporate strategy is moving to the CFO’s office
By Sheryl EstradaJuly 13, 2026
5 hours ago
Max Buchan on stage holding a microphone
Startups & VentureTerm Sheet
Valarian raises $50 million to help governments and enterprises escape America’s cloud grip
By Lily Mae LazarusJuly 13, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
Innovation
The U.S. spent $30 billion to ditch textbooks for laptops and tablets: The result is the first generation less cognitively capable than their parents
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 12, 2026
1 day ago
Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich
Big Tech
Peter Thiel and other tech billionaires are publicly shielding their children from the products that made them rich
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 12, 2026
1 day ago
A Trump Account could make your kid a millionaire by 45—but financial experts say the app's projections come with a catch
Personal Finance
A Trump Account could make your kid a millionaire by 45—but financial experts say the app's projections come with a catch
By Sydney LakeJuly 12, 2026
1 day ago
Wyoming officials say Meta’s 715,000-square-foot data center is responsible for contaminating its water system with a rare bacterium
Environment
Wyoming officials say Meta’s 715,000-square-foot data center is responsible for contaminating its water system with a rare bacterium
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 10, 2026
3 days ago
A Yale professor says America is now an 'oldigarchy'—and Boomers on LinkedIn are enraged
Crypto
A Yale professor says America is now an 'oldigarchy'—and Boomers on LinkedIn are enraged
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 12, 2026
1 day ago
Trump’s time is running out to avoid a nightmare Strait of Hormuz scenario
Energy
Trump’s time is running out to avoid a nightmare Strait of Hormuz scenario
By Jordan BlumJuly 12, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.