The YouTube channel of the Supreme Court of India was hacked on September 20 for an XRP scam. The channel released videos promoting Ripple’s cryptocurrency, XRP. A blank video titled “Brad Garlinghouse: Ripple Responds To The SEC’s $2 Billion Fine! XRP Price Prediction” was streamed to deceive viewers into participating in the scam.
The YouTube channel had over 217,000 followers before the hack and was being used to livestream court cases. The cases included constitutional matters and those with public interest which the hackers made private. They replaced the content with a scam urging users to invest in XRP.
Phishing Tactics
Phishing links were included in the video which when clicked would urge users to connect their crypto wallets. After the user approves the request, hackers can fully access the wallet and withdraw funds without needing more authentication. YouTube removed the channel after the hack because it violated their community guidelines.
Pattern of Cyber Attacks
This incident opens the can of worms to a series of high-profile hacks targeting various online platforms. There have been similar security breaches on different crypto platforms — a major worrying trend for the crypto community.
In April 2024, for example, Etherscan faced phishing ads that could steal funds. Deceptive ads sent users to fake sites ultimately risking their crypto wallets. Investigations found ad aggregators lacked oversight for letting these scams spread.
Moreover, the most recent September incident included NEAR Protocol’s X account being compromised. During this incident, an unknown hacker posted messages and videos discrediting NEAR and its upcoming events.
Metallica’s X Account Hacked: False Claims of Ticketmaster PartnershipAnother major report states the Trump family’s social media accounts were hacked recently. The hackers spread false crypto announcements and promoted a non-existent crypto token. It shows how even high-profile accounts are vulnerable to crypto scams and gives a strong case to the need for better security measures and awareness among users.
