Lady Gaga fans hit by free ‘iPad scam’ on Twitter and Facebook

London: Lady Gaga was targeted by cyber-punks who hacked her Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Multiple messages were sent, seemingly from the singer, offering free iPad2’s to every fan. Attached links directed more than 100,000 of her followers to a site requesting personal details, possibly as part of a phishing scam. The problem was finally resolved and the pop queen took to her micro blogging site to express her relief. “Phew. The hacking is over!” the BBC quoted her Gaga as writing. Her Facebook page had the post saying: “Lady Gaga’s new iPad comes out in 3 days! “So for the next 72 hours we will be hosting a massive giveaway to all the Mother Monster fans. Sign up and receive your special Lady Gaga edition iPad in time for the Holidays! For contest rules and registration visit the link below.” This was followed later by a tweet saying: “Monsters, I’m giving away FREE ipad2’s to each one of you in the spirit of the holidays :)” The singer often refers to her fans as “monsters”, suggesting the hack was specifically targeted at the singer - rather than a more general phishing attack often seen on social networking sites. Phishing attacks typically trick users into believing they are signing in to a legitimate website, but instead illegally gather personal data which can then be used to gain access to private accounts such as email and banking. The offending messages have now been removed, but web statistics show more than 100,000 of her fans followed the links. ANI