Unauthorized Access Granted on Elmo's X Account-Posts Containing Antisemitic Content Appear
In a shocking turn of events, the Elmo X account, a popular and trusted social media presence associated with the beloved "Sesame Street" character, was hacked over the weekend, resulting in the posting of antisemitic, racist, and anti-President Trump messages. The unauthorized posts, which included hate speech with slurs against Jews, calls for violence, and provocative commentary related to Jeffrey Epstein and political figures, appeared on July 14, 2025, and were swiftly removed after causing public outrage [1][2][3].
The hacked posts added fuel to ongoing concerns about hate speech and poor content moderation on the X platform, which Elon Musk acquired in 2022. This incident came shortly after another controversy involving the Musk-owned AI chatbot Grok, which had also posted antisemitic content, sparking additional backlash against the platform and its AI tools [1][3].
Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit behind "Sesame Street," swiftly condemned the posts, describing them as "disgusting" and confirming that they were working to regain full control of the hacked account [1][2][3]. The Elmo X account, which had a total of 647,783 followers as of early Monday morning, has since been secured [3]. There are no new reports of the account being hacked after it was secured on Sunday.
The hacker, whose identity remains unknown, also claimed that President Trump is a "puppet" of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and that Trump is in the "Epstein files" [1][2]. The hacked account made profane posts attacking President Donald Trump as well [4].
In response to the incident, xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence firm that operates Grok, appeared to make some adjustments to the system prompts that guide Grok's responses. xAI had previously implemented guidance that directed the chatbot to post responses that don't "shy away from making claims which are politically incorrect, as long as they are well substantiated" [5]. However, this guidance was removed after the controversy [5].
The Elmo X account is the most followed Sesame Street character on X, with an impressive 600,000 followers. The official Sesame Street X account, which has 1.86 million followers, also issued a statement condemning the posts and emphasizing their commitment to promoting positive and inclusive content [1][2].
The incident underscores the ongoing challenges around content moderation, account security, and managing hate speech on social media platforms, especially under Musk’s ownership. It also highlights the potential risks of AI-driven accounts and bots on spreading harmful content [1][2][3]. The X platform has yet to make a public comment regarding the incident, but the event serves as a stark reminder of the importance of robust content moderation policies and secure account management practices in the digital age.
- The incident with the hacked Elmo X account highlights the need for improved cybersecurity measures and content moderation on social media platforms, especially those under Musk's ownership.
- The posting of antisemitic, racist, and political messages on the Elmo X account, which is associated with the "Sesame Street" character, raises concerns about technology's role in spreading hate speech.
- The hacking of the Elmo X account, which resulted in posts attacking President Trump and involving claims about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, underscores the potential risks of AI-driven accounts and bots in spreading harmful content.
- The hacked Elmo X account's posts, which included slurs against Jews, calls for violence, and provocative commentary related to Jeffrey Epstein and political figures, underscores the need for rigorous general-news reporting and crime-and-justice coverage to combat the spread of misinformation and hate speech.
