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Microsoft confirmed on October 2, 2026, that attackers gained unauthorized access to its official X account and used it to amplify a Clippy-themed cryptocurrency promotion. Microsoft says it secured the account, removed the unauthorized posts and is investigating. The company also says it did not authorize or endorse the $Clippy token and has no affiliation with its creators or project.
What happened on Microsoft’s X account?
The compromised account followed and reposted a post from the now-suspended @clippymsftcto, an account impersonating Microsoft’s Clippy virtual assistant. The post reportedly asked how many likes it would take to bring Clippy back and promoted a token called $Clippy. SecurityWeek also reported that Microsoft’s profile image was changed to Clippy. A purported apology appeared roughly 30 minutes later and was deleted; BleepingComputer also reported a deleted Microsoft apology post.
Microsoft’s spokesperson confirmed unauthorized access: “We have confirmed unauthorized access to our account on X including posts that did not come from Microsoft.” The spokesperson said the account had been secured, the unauthorized posts removed and the circumstances were still under investigation. BleepingComputer’s October 2 report and SecurityWeek’s October 2 report describe the incident.
A second account, @ClippyMSFT, was reportedly still promoting the token. It claimed that a liquidity pool paired the token directly with $MSFT. That is a claim by the account, not an independently verified fact. Microsoft’s account reposting a promotion during a compromise does not establish that the token or its claims are legitimate.
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Is the $Clippy cryptocurrency affiliated with Microsoft?
No. Microsoft explicitly said it had not authorized, sponsored, endorsed or granted permission for a cryptocurrency associated with Clippy, Microsoft or $MSFT. It also said it had no affiliation with the token, its creators or any related cryptocurrency project.
BleepingComputer reported that a deleted Microsoft post said the company would pursue appropriate legal action to have the unauthorized token and related materials removed. Because the statement was reported from a deleted post rather than a live Microsoft post, it should be treated as a report of Microsoft’s statement, not as a currently accessible announcement.
How did the attackers get access?
Microsoft had not publicly disclosed how the attackers accessed the X account in the October 2, 2026, reports. SecurityWeek listed phishing, SIM swapping, stolen browser session cookies and compromised authorized posting tools as possible account-takeover methods, but none has been established as the cause of this incident.
Microsoft’s guidance for recovering an individual Microsoft account is not an explanation of how it recovered this corporate X account or how the attackers got in. For people securing a personal Microsoft account, Microsoft’s account-recovery guidance advises running an updated antivirus full scan before changing a password, then changing or resetting the password and reviewing connected accounts, forwarding and automatic replies.
Are there confirmed victims or losses?
The October 2 reports do not give an incident-specific count of people who bought the token or a confirmed amount of money lost. The reports also describe Microsoft’s X account as having more than 13 million followers at the time; that is an approximate figure reported then, not a current audited count or a measure of how many people saw or acted on the promotion.
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Past figures should not be mistaken for losses in this incident. BleepingComputer reported that ScamSniffer estimated roughly $59 million was stolen from 63,000 people in a separate Twitter-ad campaign using the MS Drainer wallet drainer between March and November 2023. That statistic concerns a different campaign and does not establish losses from the Clippy promotion.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How this differs from the 2024 Microsoft India compromise
BleepingComputer reported that scammers hijacked Microsoft’s India X account, @MicrosoftIndia, in June 2024, impersonated Roaring Kitty and promoted a fake GameStop crypto presale through a malicious site. In that separate incident, people who connected crypto wallets and authorized transactions had assets stolen by a wallet drainer. Its reported mechanics and losses do not show how the October 2026 attackers accessed Microsoft’s main account or whether anyone lost money through the $Clippy promotion.
Windows Central’s October 2, 2026, report also covered the Clippy-themed promotion.
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