The Independence Day fireworks started early on Sunday morning with a non-stop crackle of reports from individuals on social media sites that YouTube has been hacked to apparently target videos of singer and teen sensation Justin Bieber.
Speculation on how YouTube users might get harmed, if at all, ranges from being redirected to external sites of an adult nature to getting their PCs infected with malware.
On a separate stream of postings on social media sites, people are warning that Apple’s iTunes App Store may have been compromised by a rogue developer and that purchases may have been made without victims’ permission using their credit cards on file.
A common recommendation from people posting about these two topics is that visitors to YouTube exercise caution, especially if viewing content related to Bieber, and that App Store account holders check for any unusual activity.
Neither Apple nor Google immediately responded to requests for comment from IDG News Service.