Crypto Scammers Impersonating Real Brands Easily Hacking YouTubers

YouTube influencers who build up a substantial following on the platform have been the targets of advanced phishing emails. They take over accounts to promote cryptocurrency fraud. It is in the names of genuine brands with which they appear to be affiliated.

These scams begin with fraudsters appearing to hijack verified profiles on X (ex-twitter) with large follower bases. They subsequently pose as marketing managers of authentic brands that anyone can locate on LinkedIn.

The fake X accounts are pretty much spot-on in their mimicry. They take consumers to brands’ genuine web pages and fill feeds with histories that seem to have begun years ago by re-sharing brands’ legitimate posts.

The Fraud

Ars Technica reports that YouTubers have become very keen on analyzing supposed offers to distinguish between fake and real ones. But some scammers simply copy and paste proper offer letters. Therefore, it is already difficult to differentiate between possible sources of income, and phishing attacks that use sponsorships as bait. Some of the guidelines include failing to click on links to check a link. It is failing to check the identity of people who provide fake offers.

But if YouTubers have valid links from the beginning and get offers from brands they like and see that contacts correspond to the low dots on detailed profiles on LinkedIn as to real employees of the brands and market the brand, it is much more difficult to identify the fake offers without many obvious signs.

List of FGC Members who got their YouTube hacked (so far):

-AngryBird/BigBird
-HookGangGod
-Spooky
-KizzieKay
-Rooflemonger
-LordKnight

Scary stuff, be careful out there.

— J I Y U N A (@jiyunaJP) December 13, 2024

Prevention

To prevent getting to an X account, which purposely searches for a content creator’s real account, YouTubers should verify if the feed has no original post. It would probably be prudent to avoid downloading the PDF to sign an NDA before fully reviewing the sponsorship. You should also check social media, specifically LinkedIn profiles, with caution because AI can automatically create and run an account.

One company has suggested using X to specifically identify fake accounts, with Shure reporting that fraudsters emulated actual employees to perpetrate the scam. Within a thread on X pinned to the top, Shure cautioned YouTubers to check that any communication by us through email is from the @shure.com domain, and nip it in the bud.

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