Tag: steals
’10 MacBooks’ Twitter hacker returns, steals LeVar Burton’s account
The 10 MacBooks hacker has returned to Twitter after some downtime to accomplish one of their biggest gets yet: The official Twitter account of actor LeVar Burton of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Reading Rainbow fame.
For months, Twitter has been plagued by a now-notorious hacker that has been stealing legacy verified accounts belonging to celebrities. And LeVar Burton’s account, with its more than 2.1 million followers, is the latest victim.
Following the hackers usual pattern, Burton’s account has already been locked, so only the account’s followers can see its tweets. The hacker has already posted one of their now-infamous “10 MacBooks” scam tweets, offering too-good-to-be-true pricing for brand new MacBook Pros.
Credit: Mashable screenshot
“Hello twitter family !” reads a tweet posted to Burton’s account from the hacker. “I have a special promotion going on ! I have 10 MacBook Pro’s on sale for $600 each ! On top of that I will be signing every MacBook that is sold , also free shipping is included ! All proceeds will be going to charity ! MY DMS ARE OPENED.”
While the hacker’s scheme is nearly identical to previous hacks, there is one significant new strategy being deployed. The scam tweets are usually accompanied by a generic photo of a MacBook box, but in the tweet posted to Burton’s account, there is a new element: A smartphone propped up next to the laptop box with Burton’s logged-in account opened on the display.
It appears the hacker is trying to use that as proof that the offer is actually authentic, much like how eBay sellers will include their handwritten username on a piece of paper next to the product they are selling in the photo. Reminder: It is a scam.
Burton’s daughter, Mica, confirmed earlier on Twitter that her father’s account had been hacked. Mica Burton also confirmed that the hacker accessed LaVar’s account through a phishing email that likely convinced the actor to login to a malicious website disguised as Twitter.
When Mashable previously reported on the hacker, they had blocked the reporter of the piece from viewing their latest stolen account, which also made it impossible to reply and warn the account’s followers. The same thing appears to have happened here as Mica Burton was blocked by her father’s own account shortly after her tweets announcing the hack.
“Damn either my dads twitter account is still hacked or thanksgiving this year is going to be awkward,” she tweeted with a screenshot of the message from Twitter letting her know she’s blocked.
Unfortunately, the scam does appear to be working out for the hacker. For one, they have continually repeated these same methods, down to the scam tweets, for at least a half a year now. They very likely would have moved on to a new scheme if this one wasn’t turning a profit. Also, in Mashable’s previous reporting on this hacker, we’ve spoken to victims who fell for the scam and had lost thousands of dollars paying for non-existent MacBooks that never arrived.
Twitter has proven to be fairly slow in dealing with these matters. In previous cases, some hacked users had scam tweets being sent out from their accounts for weeks. In some cases, it took months for Twitter to return the account to its rightful owner.
Burton is not the first Star Trek: The Next Generation actor to fall victim to the “10 MacBooks” hacker either. Jonathan Frakes’ Twitter account was hacked and subsequently tweeted the MacBooks scam out in December.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie actress Anya Taylor Joy, rapper Action Bronson, 90s rock sensation Smash Mouth, and comedian Patton Oswalt make up just a small portion of the high-profile Twitter users who have had their accounts hacked by this anonymous bad actor.
However, over the past few weeks, there has been a lull in the hacker’s activity. Perhaps the hacker has been quietly targeting smaller accounts that have been less noticeable. Or perhaps the hacker was affected by Elon Musk’s removal of the blue checkmarks from legacy verified users. As Mashable has previously reported, the hacker would target big accounts by directing them to a malicious phishing website under the guise of going through a process to keep their verification badge.
But evidently the scammer has found a new way to trick some of Twitter’s most followed users into handing over their login credentials.
The Roomba j7+ is back on sale, plus many other self-emptying steals
UPDATE: Apr. 27, 2023, 5:00 a.m. EDT This story has been updated to include the best deals on robot vacuums from iRobot, eufy, and more.
Only three things are certain in life: Death, taxes, and a few days each month when you need to vacuum but just don’t have time. Whether you detest the chore or hope to make your home upkeep a bit breezier, a robot vacuum is a lifesaver. Shop models on sale below.
Robot vacuums under $200
Opens in a new tab
Our pick: Eufy G40
(opens in a new tab)
Why we like it
You won’t get smart mapping at this price point, but the Eufy Clean G40 does provide quite thorough coverage through neat rows, which provide more cleaning accuracy than the bump-and-go approach through gyroscope guidance (hence the “G” in the title). It manages to squeeze out more than an hour of cleaning on Max mode, and has suction more than strong enough for hard floors and light carpet upkeep.
-
Automatically boosts suction on carpet
-
100-minute battery life
-
Schedule cleanings in the app
More robot vacuums on sale under $200
-
iHome AutoVac Juno — $99
$199(save $100) -
iRobot Roomba 694 — $179
$274.99(save $95.99) -
Eufy G30 Verge — $158
$178(save $20) -
Eufy 11s Max — $159.99
$249.99(save $90 with on-page coupon) -
Neato Robotics D8 — $199
$399.99(save $200.99)
Robot vacuums under $500
Opens in a new tab
Why we like it
Giving up obstacle recognition and a live camera shaves nearly $300 off the price of Samsung’s Jet Bot AI+, leaving you with the mid-range Jet Bot+ at $395 — more than 50% off its regular $799. The non-AI Jet Bot still receives pretty outstanding reviews for its accurate laser mapping and — surprise — ability to actually find the room or zone you select. Suction automatically adjusts depending on floor type and debris is automatically transferred to the slim Clean Station.
-
5-layer HEPA filter
-
90-minute battery life
-
Self-emptying dock holds 60 days’ worth of debris
More robot vacuums on sale under $500
-
iRobot Roomba i4 — $209
$399.99(save $190.99) -
Eufy G35+ — $258
$479.99(save $221.99) -
Neato D9 — $279
$499.99(save $220.99) -
iRobot Roomba i1+ — $278
$469(save $191) -
iRobot Roomba i3 Evo — $244
$349.99(save $105.99) -
Shark EZ — $298
$399(save $101) -
Eufy X8 — $299.99
$599.99(save $300) -
Roborock Q5 — $299.99
$429.99(save $130) -
iRobot Roomba i3+ Evo — $399
$549.99(save $150.99) -
Roborock Q5+ — $499.99
$699.99(save $200 with on-page coupon)
Robot vacuums under $800
Opens in a new tab
Why we like it
Even without the mopping functionality just announced for the Combo version of the j7+, the OG j7+ is still a super solid investment — especially when it drops back under $600. It was the first Roomba to introduce Genius Technology and PrecisionVision Navigation to avoid small obstacles that were previously problem-causers, like phone chargers and pet waste. The j7+ also empties itself
-
Room mapping, zone cleaning, and small obstacle avoidance
-
90-minute battery life
-
Self-emptying dock holds up to two months’ worth of debris
More robot vacuums on sale under $800
-
Roborock Q7+ — $549.99
$799.99(save $250 with on-page coupon) -
Samsung Jet Bot AI+ — $624
$1,299(save $675) -
iRobot Roomba s9+ — $749
$999.99(save $250.99)
Robot vacuum and mop hybrids and dedicated robot mops
Opens in a new tab
Our pick: Roborock Q7 Max
(opens in a new tab)
Why we like it
Roborock debuted a slew of new robot vacuums in 2022. Of the new Q Series, the Q7 Max is the most advanced model that opts out of the self-emptying dock. For only $50 more than the regular Q7, the Q7 Max deploys around 35% more suction power, making it an obvious pick for homes with pets or lots of carpeting. Those carpets won’t get wet, though, as the Q7 Max knows to lift its mopping pads when carpet is detected.
-
LiDAR room mapping and zone cleaning
-
180-minute battery life
-
4200 Pa suction power versus 2700 Pa of Roborock Q7
More hybrids and robot mops on sale
-
Ecovacs Deebot N8+ — $268
$649.99(save $381.99) -
Shark AI Ultra 2-in-1 — $299.40
$449.40(save $150 with code ROBOT150) -
Yeedi Vac Station — $329.99
$499.99(save $170 with on-page coupon) -
Roborock Q7 — $349.99
$529.99(save $180 with on-page coupon) -
Ecovacs Deebot T8+ — $359.99
$699.99(save $340 with on-page coupon) -
Roborock S7 — $429.99
$649.99(save $220 with on-page coupon) -
Shark AI Ultra 2-in-1 with Self-Empty XL — $499.60
$699.60(save $200 with code ROBOT200) -
iRobot Roomba Combo j7+ — $899
$1,099.99(save $200.99)
What to consider when buying a robot vacuum
Suction power is key
A vacuum is the one purchase that you hope sucks a lot. Suction power is typically measured in Pascals (Pa), with most current vacs ranging between 1,500 Pa and 3,000 Pa. Stronger sucking will be needed to pick up heavier pieces of debris (be sure to set a no-go zone around Legos) and to pull matted-down pet hair from rugs.
Know your floor type
Carpeting and high pile rugs will probably require stronger suction than hard floors, as well as special features like an extra-wide or self-cleaning brush roll to prevent hair from wrapping and clogging. Folks in homes with multiple floor types might consider a bigger, sturdier robot vacuum that can hurl itself and its wheels over mats, rugs, and transitions from carpet to hard floors.
Consider automatic emptying
Because robot vacuums are typically under four inches tall, their onboard dust bins are also small — which means they frequently require emptying. (Dustbins fill up particularly quickly in homes with pets.) A self-emptying vacuum takes that job out of your hands, emptying itself into a larger dustbin in its charging dock. These larger bins can typically hold weeks of dirt without needing to be cleaned or dumped out.
Think about your home’s layout
Every robot vacuum is equipped with sensors and drop detection. But if your home has lots of rooms, lots of turns, or lots of close-together furniture, you’ll have fewer navigation issues with an advanced model that uses intelligent mapping to remember exactly how your home is laid out, including labeling of specific rooms, mental notes of staircases, and ability to deploy zone cleaning.
Pay attention to low-profile furniture
No one should have to be scared about what’s accumulated under their couch over the past year. A robot vacuum measuring three inches or less in height should be able to scoot under most low-hanging couches and beds.
Assess battery life and square footage
One of the main complaints people have about their robot vacuum is that it craps out in the middle of the floor. Larger spaces require more time to clean, and it all depends on how annoyed you’ll be if it only finishes a few rooms at a time. Average run times for the list below range between 90 and 200 minutes, which translates to about 500 and 2,800 square feet covered on one charge.
Look for app control
WiFi-enabled robot vacuums can be synced with a smartphone app to control scheduling, manual start, and cleaning settings, as well as telling your vac to make its rounds when you’re not home. Low-end models that don’t connect to WiFi will usually come with a separate remote. If you’re used to asking Alexa or Google to turn off the lights or tell you the weather, a model with voice integration will blend in nicely.
Google disrupts malware that steals sensitive data from Chrome users
Google has disrupted infrastructure linked to the notorious CryptBot malware, which the company claims has stolen data from hundreds of thousands of browser users in the past year alone. CryptBot is malicious information-stealing malware first discovered in 2019. The infostealer malware is typically distributed by spoofed websites masquerading as legitimate software sites that offer free […]
Google disrupts malware that steals sensitive data from Chrome users by Carly Page originally published on TechCrunch
Brit Awards 2023: Harry Styles steals the show with four wins
Dropbox suffers breach as hacker steals from 130 GitHub repositories
The exposed data included ‘a few thousand names and email addresses’ belonging to Dropbox employees, customers, sales leads and vendors.
Read more: Dropbox suffers breach as hacker steals from 130 GitHub repositories
Serial Thief Steals Thousands Using Cellphones (and Credit Cards) from Gym Locker Rooms
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
What to Do if a Big Tech Company Steals Your Code
In 2016, cybersecurity pro Patrick Wardle heard a story that deeply disturbed him: cybercriminals were using malware to surreptitiously spy on people through their MacOS webcams and microphones. In one particularly unsettling case, a hacker had used a malware called “Fruitfly” to hijack the webcams of laptops with the…