Bitcoin scammers compromise Tesco Twitter account

Tesco was left red faced this week as hackers took over its Twitter account to push a Bitcoin scam.

The retailer, which has almost 550,000 Twitter followers, announced it would give away free Bitcoins in return for investments. The hackers used Microsoft founder Bill Gates’s avatar and changed Tesco’s handle to ‘Billgatesmsc.’

“Bitcoin is on the rise again! One day, it will without doubt replace fiat currencies,” one tweet declared. “I’d like to give back to the community, therefore any Bitcoin you send to this address, I will send back double! Comment your BTC address below when done.”

The hackers failed to make off with any cash. It remains unclear as to how they managed to compromise the account. Tesco tweeted: “We are aware of some issues with our @Tesco account and are urgently resolving the situation. If you need to contact us in the meantime please visit https://www.tesco.com/help/contact/ for alternative ways to get in touch”.