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The official X account OpenAI uses to advertise its updates and announcements was taken over by threat actors advertising a fake cryptocurrency.
The threat actors advertised “$OPENAI”, a fake blockchain token that it intends to trick potential buyers into believing is owned by OpenAI.
“We’re very happy to announce $OPEANAI: the gap between Al and blockchain technology,” the threat actors said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on the @OpenAI Newsroom account.
The post also linked users to a site impersonating OpenAI’s website, but it is instead a phishing site with a “CLAIM $OPENAI” button.
However, $OPENAI does not exist, and instead, users who attempt to link their crypto accounts in an effort to receive the free cryptocurrency risk providing the threat actors with their login details.
OpenAI appears to have retaken control of the account, with the post no longer appearing on the account feed.
It is unclear whether or not there were any instances in which the scam worked.
Just months ago, crypto scammers took control of the official McDonald’s Instagram account and netted over US$700,000 (A$1.04 million) in stolen funds after advertising a new fake branded memecoin – GrimaceCoin.
The scammers took over the page, posted an ad for the coin, and changed the account’s profile to market the coin, making it appear to be actually affiliated with McDonald’s.
Additionally, the scammers also breached the X (formerly Twitter) account of McDonald’s senior marketing director Guillaume Huin.
The result was a market capitalisation that was boosted up to $20 million before dropping below $1 million.
At one point prior to the post being taken down, the scammers commented: “thank you for the $700,000 in Solana”, suggesting the hackers cashed in on US$700,000 (roughly A$1.04 million).
Within half an hour, the post was deleted, and McDonald’s regained control of the account.
The technique the scammers used is called a “rug pull” in the crypto world. It is a scam where the owners of the coin take the funds from the coin’s liquidity pool and vanish, making the coins worthless. As in the case of Grimace, these coins are often faked and then promoted heavily on social media to encourage quick investment.
Once the scam has been completed, the scammers delete any evidence of their existence, meaning social media accounts and posts, so that they are very difficult to track down.
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