Britney Spears dead in Twitter page

BEIJING, July 2 (Xinhuanet) -- Britney Spears has been claimed dead in her own Twitter page, after hackers got into her account and posted a fake message.

The pop singer's Twitter page was targeted by hackers on Saturday. One announced her death to her two million followers, saying: "Britney has passed today. It is a sad day for everyone. More news to come."

Young women pose next to a wax figure of Britney Spears during a look-a-like contest at Madame Tussauds in Berlin, May 19, 2009. (Xinhua/Reuters File Photo)

After the fake tweet, the rumor quickly spread across the Internet.

A Twitter statement made by Britney's representatives soon after said: "Britney's Twitter was just hacked. The last message is obviously not true. She is fine and dandy spending a quiet day at home relaxing."

This is the second time Spears's Twitter page had been hacked this year. TMZ reports that in January, pranksters posted a series of vulgar "tweets" using her account.

The social networking site's executives have shut down part of the service as they tried to uncover how the system was being hacked.