BitOK and SpaceX have jointly identified a fake cryptocurrency giveaway that was conducted by an Elon Musk impersonator hoax. Through this operation, scammers were able to obtain $165,000 in contributions.
During live YouTube broadcasts, deepfake copies of Elon Musk were purportedly used in the scam; however, that footage has since been taken down.
The claim that was posted states that viewers were allegedly given a QR code that allowed them to visit a website by the broadcast.
According to the page, anyone who wanted to participate were told to send cryptocurrency to the specified donation addresses and then wait for the transaction to be processed.
After that, a 200% reward and a bitcoin reimbursement to their wallets are assured.
Later, SpaceX began sharing fake giveaway broadcasts on its YouTube account, gaining 180,000 subscribers in the process.
Following further analysis, it was discovered that the BTC address used by the persons responsible for contribution receipts was bc1qc4rwqqf0q75rn032knwkvxtrdm4vurkusr8s4k.
The total amount accumulated was 2.48 BTC, or around $91,566 at the current market rate.
The following address was then transferred with every dollar: bc1q6yjkfe0edtyn4luwskx30gg35r7eclllfsp3jg.
1.25 BTC of the money were sent from the address bc1q6‒sp3jg to the KuCoin exchange 3NcPowGtnnUxsgFSeCUoiaXW2MtcHUjXF4 for deposit.
Simultaneously, the outstanding value was sent to the deposit address 3NcPowGtnnUxsgFSeCUoiaXW2MtcHUjXF4 of the KuCoin exchange after being transferred to the change address bc1qwyrv7wkuqh79gk9uu9zjhc2sutyw80ksk4qjug.
This revealed deception is only the latest in a long line of dishonest plots.
According to blockchain intelligence company CertiK, security events and cryptocurrency frauds cost over $32.2 million in October.
Exit scams, vulnerabilities, and manipulations of flash loans were shown to be the main reasons.
In November, the total amount of money lost due to compromised finances was $290 million.
