NEWS

New phishing warns: Your verified Twitter account may be at risk

Posted on May 4, 2022 by

Phishing emails increasingly target verified Twitter accounts with emails designed to steal their account credentials, as shown by numerous ongoing campaigns conducted by threat actors.

Verified accounts on Twitter are designated by a blue check next to their name, which indicates account holders are notable influencers, celebrities, politicians, journalists, activists, and government and private organizations.

To receive this ‘blue badge,’ Twitter users must apply for verification, which entails submitting additional information, including ID cards, website references, and other reasons that make your account ‘notable.’

These accounts typically have many followers or are considered “authorative” in some circles and thus are highly sought after by threat actors to promote scam campaigns and malicious activity.

At the same time, as it’s not easy to gain a blue badge, emails warning that Twitter will take it away tend to cause people to react quickly without analyzing the message properly for signs of suspicious behavior quickly.

Targeting verified Twitter users

These emails say that there is a problem with the recipient’s verified account and that they should click on the ‘Check notifications’ to learn more about what’s wrong.

The phishing emails warn that ignoring this message could lead to the account’s suspension.

Clicking on the ‘Check notifications’ button brings the recipient to a page prompting them to enter their login credentials. Additionally, the page will prompt users to enter their credentials twice, which the threat actors use to verify that incorrect information wasn’t entered by mistake.

After entering the credentials, the phishing kit will perform a password reset on your account using the inputted email address. The phishing page will prompt targets to enter a login verification code, which the threat actors will use to finish the password reset process.

While the phishing pages clearly do not belong to Twitter, mistakes happen in our often hectic lives, and victims commonly submit their credentials by accident.

As always, when receiving emails that lead to login forms, make sure to examine the URL of the landing page and make sure it corresponds to the company that allegedly sent you the email.

If there is any doubt, junk the email and contact the company directly to verify if the email was a scam.

Original Posts: New phishing warns: Your verified Twitter account may be at risk