The unflappable sanctity of Elmo was briefly commandeered with ill intent by an “unknown hacker” on X over the weekend. As of this writing, thankfully, the issue appears to have been resolved, though the official Elmo account has not shared an update since the hack.
As seen in screenshots included in a report from Mediaite, X updates shared during the Elmo account hack included antisemitic statements and calls for violence, as well as mentions of Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein. These updates no longer appear on Elmo's account.
Reached for comment by Complex on Monday, a Sesame Workshop spokesperson called the messages “disgusting” and confirmed the hack.
“Elmo’s X account was compromised by an unknown hacker who posted disgusting messages, including antisemitic and racist posts,” the spokesperson told Complex, adding that efforts were in motion to regain “full control” of the account.
As you'll recall, Elmo's X account was previously the home for an authentic and innocent inquiry to his nearly 650,000 followers that led to a global mental health check-in of the highest order. After being inundated with all manner of vulnerability in January of last year, Elmo said in a follow-up X update that he was “glad he asked” his followers how they were doing, as doing so is important from time to time.
“Elmo will check in again soon, friends!” the beloved red monster said, adding in his signature “Elmo loves you” as a fitting closer.
All that to say, leave Elmo alone.
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