When it comes to potential crypto hack victims, Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin has to be up there as one of the most least-likely candidates.
However as per events over the weekend, it appears that this isn’t actually the case, as the Russian tech genius saw his Twitter (now X) account hacked, leading to almost $700,000 worth of funds and NFTs being taken via a subsequent phishing scam.
The scam commenced once hackers gained access into Buterin’s X account… which therefore gave them a platform to promote the conniving illegitimate phishing page to his 4.9 million trustworthy followers.
The now-deleted post advertised what visitors thought was a site celebrating the launch of ‘Proto-Danksharding coming to Ethereum’. Here, those who clicked on the malicious link were under the impression that they’d be able to claim a free celebratory NFT.
After willingly connecting their crypto wallets, the hackers were then able to drain them of funds and other forms of digital assets. Per X updates from notorious on-chain sleuth ZachXBT, a combined $691,000 was taken in the scam - a total that accounted for stolen crypto amounts, as well as the value of stolen Blue-Chip NFTs such as multiple CryptoPunks.
The scam’s momentum finally came to halt once Vitalik’s father Dmitry Buterin confirmed the attack via a post on X.
As of now, the hack’s most cited explanation has been that it was one of the ‘SIM-swap’ variety- i.e. where scammers target weaknesses in two-factor authentication and verification processes by contacting mobile phone carriers and tricking them into activating a SIM card in their possession.
However as the likes of ZachXBT have suggested, Buterin’s high-profile status across the crypto and tech spaces leaves him susceptible to all types of scams, including those that involve more sophisticated and expensive practices.
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This article is intended for educational purposes and is not financial advice.
