Twitter hacker does fat lot of good

The tweet was the work of a hacker, who unceremoniously took control of the account and used it as a soapbox to sell expensive diets. Picture: Supplied, Cape Argus

The tweet was the work of a hacker, who unceremoniously took control of the account and used it as a soapbox to sell expensive diets. Picture: Supplied, Cape Argus

Published Mar 4, 2013

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Cape Town - The Ministry of State Security is expected to keep South Africa safe from threats and cyber attacks. But on Saturday, much to the amusement of internet users, the department’s Twitter account was hacked.

“Fastest way for processing fat off your body in 2 weeks,” tweeted the account linking amused users to a “miracle diet”.

But the department is not targeting beer bellies, big thighs and double chins as issues of national security.

The tweet was the work of a hacker, who unceremoniously took control of the account and used it as a soapbox to sell expensive diets.

The irony of South Africa’s security agency being compromised was not lost on the online community with many users sharing their amusement.

“Ooh, hope the password wasn’t ‘secret’, hey,” tweeted Gaye Davis.

“Whoops,” chirped in Jako Swanepoel.

The link took users to a website filled with “gripping testimonies” and “gushing praise” for a new Acai Berry Diet that promises no more bloating and a new gas-free life.

DA defence spokesman David Maynier joked that the website offered some good advice, but even with the department’s broad definition of national security, it would be difficult to include South African’s diets as a security concern.

“One would expect that the department responsible for protecting the state from cyber attacks would be hacker proof,” he said. “It came as a surprise when it wasn’t.”

Department spokesman Brian Dube confirmed the account had been hacked.

He said that as soon as officials realised what had happened, the account’s password was reset to prevent the hacker from using it again.

The tweet has since been deleted. - Cape Argus

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