Chipotle the latest major brand to be Twitter hacked
Chipotle has been forced to apologise to its fans after offensive tweets were sent from its profile by hackers.
The attack took place in the early hours of the morning (8 February) when a barrage of racist, homophobic and anti-government tweets splurged from its Twitter profile. It also saw the company logo’s replaced with a Swastika sign.
Chipotle has since removed the offensive messages and tweeted the following apology.
We apologize for the very offensive messages sent out from our account earlier tonight. We were unfortunately hijacked temporarily. -Joe
— Chipotle (@ChipotleTweets) February 8, 2015"We apologize for the very offensive messages sent out from our account earlier tonight. We were unfortunately hijacked temporarily. -Joe."
Celebrity news site GossipCop was able to see the tweets before they were removed. One reportedly read: “It is our regret that we will be closing all Chipotle restaurants on Dec. 31, 2015. @TheCeltic666 has poisoned our meat supply. LOL F*GS.”
Another tweet read: ““We are now in full support of the Nazi party. F*ck that N*gger Obama.”
Further posts attacked security agencies such as the FBI and CIA.
Two Twitter accounts - TUGFeds and @TheCeltics - have since claimed responsibility for the attack and both have since had their accounts suspended by Twitter. Neither users gave a reason for hacking the fast food chain.
Well-known hacker group Anonymous was one of the first to flag up the attack via its Twitter feed.
Chipotle faked a Twitter account in 2013 in a PR stunt tied to its 20th anniversary campaign. At the time, the restaurant said it was a carefully planned stunt that was not designed to be “harmful, hateful or controversial”.
The restaurant joins a growing list of brands to fall victim to a cyber attack. Most notably, Sony Pictures was hacked at the end of 2014 and in the ensuing fallout was forced to cancel the released of satirical comedy The Interview, which involves a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un.