Tenable warns users of scammers stealing millions in cryptocurrency through fake giveaways on social media, as fake Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Cardano, Ripple and Shiba Inu giveaways proliferate on YouTube Live.
$8.9 million stolen
Tenable has calculated that, across a subset of YouTube Live scams encountered over the last month alone, scammers have stolen at least $8.9 million US dollars worth of cryptocurrency. “Scammers are leveraging compromised YouTube accounts to promote fake cryptocurrency giveaways for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Cardano, Ripple, Shiba Inu and other cryptocurrencies,” said Satnam Narang, Staff Research Engineer at Tenable. “The Bitcoin scams I monitored received $8.2 million in stolen funds, for an average amount of $1.6 million per scam. Ethereum scams received $413k in stolen funds, receiving on average $82,778 per scam. Finally, Shiba Inu scams earned $239k in funds, receiving on average $34,192 per scam.”
Scam makes use of influential voices
Scammers recognise that users place a lot of trust in influential voices so create fake videos featuring the founders and co-founders of cryptocurrencies as well as notable individuals associated with cryptocurrency companies or CEOs of companies who have promoted the use of and/or discussed the purchase of cryptocurrencies for their company balance sheets.
Narang identified scams using footage of the following figures:
- Michael Saylor, chairman and CEO of MicroStrategy and a fervent supporter of Bitcoin
- VitalikButerin, Ethereum co-founder
- Charles Hoskinson, Cardano founder and Ethereum co-founder
- Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple Labs
- Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX
As part of the scam, users are directed to external websites that claim to double a users’ cryptocurrency, whether it be Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, Cardano, Ripple or Shiba Inu.
Narang offers the following advice, “It’s really important for users to be skeptical of YouTube Live videos promising giveaways from notable figures such as the ones above and new individuals that may emerge in the future. Never send cryptocurrency to participate in a giveaway, as it’s unlikely to be genuine, and you won’t be able to recover your digital money once it has been sent. It’s also important for viewers to help play their part and report these YouTube Live videos as there’s a chance it might save someone from falling victim.”
The news follows recent reports of a cryptocurrency scam targeting iPhone users.
