Attention: You need to "Allow Scripts Globally" in your browser to purchase any VPN.image

Hundreds of YouTube Channels Compromised in Hacking Attack

Woman holding a iPad Pro Space Gray with video sharing website YouTube on the screen
YouTube accounts have recently suffered a security breach with hacking of hundreds of accounts by OurMine, though there was no malicious intent.

Hundreds of popular channels on YouTube have been hacked by OurMine hackers, being the biggest attack in YouTube’s history.

OurMine security group, which is a hacker group, has compromised hundreds of YouTube accounts.

The videos of the attacked channels showed “#Ourmine” as its title, stating that they were just testing the security and that they could be contacted for additional information.

Big Guns Attacked

The hacking on the YouTube channels comprised of different sized channels.

Some of the channels were also big guns, for instance, Studio 71.

It is a niche channel with websites forming a large network.

Other big guns included JustKiddingNews and RomanAtwoodVlogs as well as Wranglerstar, along with many other top channels that were hacked in a short span.

Not So Safe

If you think your YouTube account is protected, OurMine has made sure that it is not.

The security group had attacked hundreds of accounts on YouTube on the 13th of April, and made changes to the titles and the descriptions on the sites.

They hailed the hacking as the biggest one in the history of YouTube, as it affected thousands of YouTube videos.

It seems that Studio 71 was the main target of the recent hacking by OurMine.

Studio 71 consists of thousands of YouTube channels, but all of them were not victims of the hacking.

Intentions Analyzed

Group security icon
Hundreds of popular channels on YouTube have been hacked by OurMine hackers, being the biggest attack in YouTube’s history.

It is not known whether the hacking of the YouTube accounts was merely a publicity strategy or whether it was done for testing the security of the sites.

It could be either of the two reasons.

However, OurMine has stated that the intentions were not bad.

They had no negative intentions and were only concerned regarding the security and the privacy of the channels and the network.

It could be true, because one of the hacking victims, Wranglestar, stated that the hackers of their channel had not leaked out any information and also that the channels were now safe.

Making a Statement

All hacking cannot be considered as malicious.

Of course, the hacking cannot be considered in the best interests of the victims either.

It can only be considered as something silly or just annoying.

However, OurMine has not made attempts to eliminate any content or make any changes to it.

They are making a statement about the internet security.

More importantly, it should be noted that OurMine has now started changing the hacked sites back to the original condition.

OurMine claims that they conduct these routine hacking and their intentions are good.

However, the hacking victims may not agree.

This is because when the titles of the channels are changed, it will not be visible in the search results.

It is quite annoying for channel owners who want to edit or update content and publish additional content on the affected YouTube site.

Earlier Victims

This is not the only time that OurMine has been hacking channels.

The hacking group has also been responsible for spreading the false news about Britney Spears dying, in December last year.

They had also claimed that they were responsible for the hacking of Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO’s Pinterest account.

There have been several other victims of hacking who have fallen prey to OurMine, namely, Netflix US and also Jack Dorsey, Twitter co founder, Marvel entertainment, as well as SundarPichai, CEO of Google.

Precautionary Measures

All said and done, the hacking of the YouTube accounts can be termed as short-term issues.

It is probably a good time to update your security basics.

Users can change their passwords and make them more complex.

Also, they can limit the admin access to only ones who need it, for example, people who upload or edit content and handle major tasks on the site.

Users whose accounts are victims to the hacking can also contact YouTube and revert to the save point, but they must be aware that recent updates and comments can be lost.

Most accounts have already been reverted, but victims have to realize that hacking is a part of the internet.

It can occur on social accounts, email accounts and bank accounts, so extra precautions must be taken.

Leave a Reply

Name (required)

Email (required)

Website

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Share via
Share via
Send this to a friend