Promoting a Scam Meme Coin After Celebrity Social Media Accounts Are Hacked -
Cyber investigator ZachXBT has uncovered a series of hacks targeting popular social media accounts like X and Instagram, resulting in scams using fake meme coins that netted around $3.5 million.
These attacks targeted the accounts of celebrities like Usher and actor Dean Norris, as well as major brands like McDonald’s and a popular aquarium in Japan.
The attacks began in August 2024, following a recurring pattern of hacking accounts, promoting fake coins, and then transferring the proceeds to anonymous wallets.
The McDonald’s account was used to promote the GRIMACE coin, resulting in the theft of $690,000, while Dean Norris’ account was used to promote the SCHRADER coin.
The “Usher” account was also used to promote the “USHER” coin, generating revenue of 4,868 SOL, which was traced to subsequent attacks targeting other accounts such as “Enoshima Aquarium” and content creator “Andy Ayrey.”
The attacks were clearly audacious, with the “Ayrey” account promoting six different meme coins in a matter of days, generating over $2.1 million, some of which was deposited into a wallet linked to a casino.
This resulted in significant losses for investors, at a time when social media platforms are struggling to control and limit such damage.
