Experts warn of sensitive data being accessed in Twitter hack

More sensitive information from high-profile Twitter accounts hit by a cryptocurrency scam may have been accessed and could be leaked in the weeks ahead, cyber security experts have warned.

On Wednesday, prominent accounts including those of Barack Obama, Elon Musk and Kanye West were hacked as part of a widespread scam.

The accounts, which have large Twitter followings, were simultaneously hacked and a message posted encouraging users to send $1,000 (£798) to a Bitcoin address to receive double in return.

Twitter has since confirmed that the attack was the result of a “social engineering” scheme by hackers who targeted Twitter staff with access to the site’s “internal systems and tools”.

The platform said it had restored most functionality and was continuing to investigate, but security experts have warned that as well as gaining access to the accounts to post the tweets, the hackers could have seen other private account information.

Dan Panesar, director of UK and Ireland at Securonix, said: “I think it would be highly likely that a number of credentials have been stolen by the attackers and we could see more accounts and sensitive information being leaked in the coming weeks.”

Twitter is yet to confirm if any other account data was affected by the attack.

According to publicly available blockchain records, the Bitcoin address linked to the scam had received more than $110,000 (£88,000).

Twitter said it had taken “significant steps to limit access to internal systems and tools” while it continued its investigation into the incident.

Picture: AP. Elon Musk was just one of many verified accounts hacked on Twitter on Wednesday.