Cybersecurity vulnerability exposed in Twitter hack

Last week, many high-profile accounts on Twitter were hacked. After this happened, thousands of verified accounts were put on lockdown so Twitter officials could figure out their next move.

Hackers targeted 130 verified accounts and reset passwords for 45 of those. They managed to download information from eight unverified accounts.

Twitter officials realized accounts were being hacked when the hackers posted the exact same message and link on each account. The tweet said "I have decided to give back to my community. All Bitcoin sent to my address below will be sent back doubled. I am only doing a maximum of $50,000,000."

The linked address in the tweets received 393 transactions worth roughly 12.9 Bitcoin, which is the equivalent of $118,104.27. Bitcoin is a popular type of cryptocurrency used on the internet.

Cryptocurrency, or digital currency, is used for online purchases and transactions. The main attraction to cryptocurrency is that central authority oversees user's money and it can be sent between two parties directly.

Officials at Twitter believe the hackers are from a community called the "OG." This is a group of individuals who target short and original Twitter handles such as @a, @b, etc.

Twitter believes the motivation behind the attacks may be a combination of bragging rights, financial incentive, a challenge or a possible attempt to cause a disruption. Hackers have not appeared to do any other damage than the Bitcoin scam.

The question many users are now asking is about the level of safety and protection Twitter provides. Twitter has responded that they are working on upgrading security for users and investigating the attack.

"We are continuing our investigation of this incident, working with law enforcement, and determining longer-term actions we should take to improve the security of our systems. We have multiple teams working around the clock focused on this and on keeping the people who use Twitter safe and informed," a company spokesman reported.