Critical YouTube Hack Warning—COD, Fortnite, Minecraft Gamers At Risk
Critical YouTube Hack Warning—COD, Fortnite, Minecraft Gamers At Risk
Author: Davey Winder, Senior Contributor
Published on: 2025-02-02 10:36:54
Source: Forbes – Innovation
Disclaimer:All rights are owned by the respective creators. No copyright infringement is intended.
YouTube gamers warned as hackers target popular videogames.
Gamers are not immune when it comes to hacking attacks, with everything from security vulnerabilities in graphics cards to 70-year-old women being unknowingly subscribed to costly gaming services, in the news recently. Nor, for that matter, are YouTubers, as reports of tutorial videos that are anything but helpful, and YouTube creator account password stealers hit the headlines. But what if you combined the two? YouTube and gamers make for an attractive mix as far as criminal hackers are concerned, and McAfee has just issued a critical warning for all players of Call of Duty, Fortnite, Minecraft, Apex Legends and Roblox. Here’s what you need to know.
Critical YouTube Warning For Gamers—What You Need To Know
Everyone has their favorite game and wants to be king of the hill when playing it. It’s not exactly surprising that some gamers will search for an edge that can help them rise above others, albeit in the form of cheats in one form or another. It’s this quest to do better by any means that sits at the heart of a new and critical security warning for all gamers who use YouTube as a means to this end. Security researchers at McAfee Labs have warned gamers, especially younger gamers, are unwittingly downloading malware disguised as game hacks, software cracks, and cryptocurrency tools.
“Popular games like Minecraft, Roblox, Fortnite, Apex Legends, and Call of Duty are among those targeted by these scams,” Brooke Seipel, editor in chief at McAfee, said, with “gamers searching for cheats to gain an advantage—like seeing through walls, speeding up characters, or unlocking premium items—being lured to malicious links.” Siepel warned that kids and teens are seen as prime targets by hackers as they often lack experience in identifying online scams, especially when tempted by aimbots and anti-ban tools. “Scammers exploit this curiosity and eagerness, making it easier to trick young gamers into infecting their devices,” Siepel said.
How YouTube Hackers Compromise Gamers And How To Stay Safe
Gamers are lured into the hacking web when they search for free cheats, aimbots and even cracked games. These searches will often point to a YouTube video that gives instructions on how to obtain the game-winning goodies. What they actually provide, of course, is a way to download malware after disabling antivirus software or Windows Defender to prevent detection. Once downloaded and installed, the malware can steal sensitive data such as passwords and track user activity.
Siepel provided the following tips for gamers to stay safe and avoid the YouTube hacking threat:
- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Avoid downloading software from unverified sources.
- Always have an active antivirus program running on your devices to detect and block malware.
- Never disable antivirus programs or click on unfamiliar links.
- Before downloading anything, check the website’s URL for inconsistencies or unusual details.
- Regularly check for unfamiliar files or programs on your devices.
“Always remember: no cheat or crack is worth compromising your security,” Siepel concluded. And don’t always take everything you find online at face value. Keep gaming and stay safe. I have reached out to YouTube for a statement.
Disclaimer: All rights are owned by the respective creators. No copyright infringement is intended.
