Microsoft tweets advice about phishing, but too late to save Skype

Microsoft’s security team just tweeted a handy link, educating users about the dangers of phishing.

Microsoft tweet about phishing

Hmmph. Interesting timing…

Just two days ago, Skype (which, you may know, is owned by Microsoft) had its Twitter account, Facebook page and blog hijacked after Syrian Electronic Army hackers phished password information from one of the company’s social media team.

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To pour salt into the wounds, it was Microsoft that the hackers had a poke at with their mischievous tweets from Skype’s compromised account.

Hacked Skype account

Once Skype had wrestled control of its Twitter account back into legitimate hands, it apologised for the inconvenience.

Ironically, Skype's accounts were phished a couple of days ago

I guess it’s as good time as any for Microsoft to help internet users learn how to spot a phishing attack. I hope they shared that advice with their colleagues at Skype as well.

Oh well, better late than never I suppose.


Graham Cluley is an award-winning keynote speaker who has given presentations around the world about cybersecurity, hackers, and online privacy. A veteran of the computer security industry since the early 1990s, he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows, makes regular media appearances, and is the co-host of the popular "The AI Fix" and "Smashing Security" podcasts. Follow him on Bluesky and Mastodon, or drop him an email.

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