On Monday morning, a social media panic began after Sony Music Entertainment tweeted that pop superstar Britney Spears had died.
The tweet read: “britney spears is dead by accident! we will tell you more soon #RIPBritney.”
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A second tweet by OurMine on the Sony Music account read: “RIP @britneyspears #RIPBritney 1981-2016.”
Nearly a half hour later, OurMine took responsibility for the tweets, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Sony deleted all of the tweets with fake news regarding Britney Spears’ death by 9 AM.
Legendary songwriter Bob Dylan was also a victim in the online hack. OurMine tweeted, “Rest in peace @britneyspears,” with a crying emoji.
After the news of Britney Spears’ death hit Twitter, the reaction was swift.
Someone has hacked one of Sony Music’s Twitter accounts, it seems.
Keeping up the tradition of great internet security, Sony. pic.twitter.com/aQc5Ho1Wsg
— Ryan Brown (@Toadsanime) December 26, 2016
At the age of 35, the legendary Britney Spears has passed away. We’ll miss you, Brit. ❤️ #RIPBritney
— gius ~ (@distinguiti) December 26, 2016
A follow up tweet explained that the account had been hacked by notorious hacker group OurMine.
Last week, OurMine hacked the Netflix US Twitter account as well as the Marvel Twitter account.
What do you think about this hacker group infiltrating Sony Music’s Twitter account and tweeting that Britney Spears died?
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[H/T The Hollywood Reporter]
