BBC Newsbeat<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The makers of Sesame Street say hackers were behind “disgusting” antisemitic messages that appeared on Elmo’s X account.<\/p>\n A string of posts calling for the extermination of Jewish people appeared on the verified page, which has about 650,000 followers, on Sunday.<\/p>\n Other messages attacked US President Donald Trump and called for files relating to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to be released.<\/p>\n Sesame Workshop, the non-profit organisation that makes the children’s programme, said an “unknown hacker” had gained access to the account.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n “Elmo’s X account was compromised by an unknown hacker who posted disgusting messages, including antisemitic and racist posts,” a spokesperson said. <\/p>\n “We are working to restore full control of the account.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The UK’s Action Fraud said there was a rise in social and email accounts being hacked last year<\/a>, with more than 35,000 reports. <\/p>\n It advised users to set up two-step verification alongside a strong, unique password.<\/p>\n Elmo is one of Sesame Street’s best-known characters and has been teaching children about kindness since the 1980s. <\/p>\n A number of puppets from the long-running US kids’ TV show have a presence on social media and Elmo has had an account on X, formerly Twitter, since 2012.<\/p>\n In 2024 the he went viral on X for asking “How is everybody doing?”<\/p>\n The post, which is still pinned on the profile, had almost 20,000 replies with lots of users sharing their despair about the world.<\/a><\/p>\n No more posts have been shared on the account since the antisemitic posts were removed. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Getty](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/bcc2\/live\/446a5e10-60a4-11f0-ba44-5934558aeaa1.jpg.webp\")
Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n‘Release the files’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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