Early 4th of July morning, The Fox News Politics Twitter account reported that President Obama had been assassinated in Iowa with Vice-President Joe Biden set to take his place immediately.
“[Two] gunshot wounds have proved too much,” read one of the Tweets. “It’s a sad 4th for #America.” But wait, Obama is just fine, and Biden is still just the VP.
So, what happened? Turns out, the Fox News Politics Twitter account was hacked shortly after midnight and the false messages about the president’s early demise were left around 3:00 a.m.
The account was hacked by “The Script Kiddies.” In an exclusive interview with SUNY Stony Brook’s student-run Think magazine, a reported member of the Script Kiddies stated they chose Fox News because “we figured their security would be just as much of a joke as their reporting.”