Hackers Hijack HBO Max’s Reddit Account to Spread Crypto-Stealing Malware

In brief

• HBO Max’s hijacked Reddit account ran 108 malicious ads over roughly 48 hours.
• Malwarebytes linked the ads to PasteSwitch, an operation targeting Windows and Mac users with information-stealing malware.
• Reddit paused the ads and opened an investigation; victim counts and cryptocurrency losses remain unconfirmed.

Hackers hijacked streaming service HBO Max’s verified Reddit account earlier this month and used it to run 108 malicious advertisements over two days, cybersecurity experts warn.

In its report on Monday, researchers from cybercrime intelligence firm Hudson Rock link the account takeover to a broader operation targeting passwords and cryptocurrency wallet information.

“The incident was brought to light by Alex Cutts in the r/cybersecurity subreddit. While browsing the platform, they encountered an official Reddit advertisement authored by the verified u/hbomax account,” Hudson Rock wrote. “The ad aggressively promoted a native macOS application for HBO Max, a standalone application that does not currently exist.”

Instead of providing an installer, the site instructed visitors to open Terminal on a Mac, or Run or PowerShell on Windows, and paste a command that could infect their computer.