When I started at Binance approximately one year ago, I was shocked by the layers of security protocols that new employees had to go through to get set up. Little did I know, the onboarding process was the easy part. Binance employees across the globe undergo regular training and random security checks to ensure they abide by the strict cybersecurity rules in place. 

Despite having previously led one of the world’s largest cybersecurity teams and managed some of the largest data breaches in history (US OPM, Ashley Madison, etc.), I was not prepared for the onslaught of cyberattacks, phishing attacks, and scams that regularly target the crypto community. Now I understand why Binance goes to the lengths it does. 

However, criminals will almost always find a way to adapt to and circumvent even the most secure system. Over the past month, I’ve received several online messages thanking me for taking the time to meet with project teams regarding potential opportunities to list their assets on Binance.com. This was odd because I don’t have any oversight of or insight into Binance listings, nor had I met with any of these people before.

It turns out that a sophisticated hacking team used previous news interviews and TV appearances over the years to create a “deep fake” of me. Other than the 15 pounds that I gained during COVID being noticeably absent, this deep fake was refined enough to fool several highly intelligent crypto community members. 

Beyond this latest incident, there’s been a recent spike in hackers pretending to be Binance employees and executives on platforms such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Telegram, etc. We are prepared to defend our users and our ecosystem. After all, we have the largest and most experienced cybersecurity team in the industry, complete with leading investigators with experience at the FBI, US Secret Service, IRS, Europol, and other reputable agencies with a proven track record of fighting cybercrime. These world-class experts are here to help Binance build a digital asset ecosystem that is safe and secure for all users.