Rapper Nelly’s Twitter Account Hacked for Crypto Phishing Attacks
American rapper Nelly recently had his X (formerly Twitter) account hacked and misused to carry out social engineering attacks aimed at luring unsuspecting individuals to a cryptocurrency phishing site. On-chain investigator ZachXBT noted in a recent message on Telegram that the hacker even changed Nelly’s profile to falsely present themselves as a security analyst from Scam Sniffer, a reputable web-based security solution. The compromised account’s bio read, „On-chain security analyst. Helping you catch scammers @realscamsniffer.“ However, the account has since been removed or deleted with a message stating that it no longer exists.
Nelly, whose real name is Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., is a well-known rapper with a successful career that includes eight studio albums and numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards and nine Billboard Music Awards.
ZachXBT shared two messages sent by the scammer to unsuspecting individuals, trying to deceive them by claiming to investigate compromises in wallet approvals on the recipients‘ addresses. This tactic aims to trick users into signing malicious transactions and ultimately stealing their funds.
Scam Sniffer, the legitimate security solution, confirmed ZachXBT’s findings on X and warned users about the compromised account impersonating their team. They stated, „@NellioETH is compromised and pretending to be a member of ScamSniffer. They are trying to message people in an attempt to social engineer them into using a phishing site.“ They also emphasized the importance of only visiting the official Scam Sniffer website, scamsniffer.io.
Crypto space plagued by numerous hacks and scams
The cryptocurrency industry has been facing a significant number of hacks and scams, especially in the third quarter of 2023. According to a report by blockchain security platform Immunefi, there were 76 hacks on crypto and Web3 projects and firms in Q3 2023. This number represents a substantial increase compared to the 30 hacks reported during the same period in 2022.
Throughout September, approximately $332 million was lost due to various exploits, hacks, and scams, marking it as a record-breaking month for crypto exploits. One notable incident occurred on September 23 when the Hong Kong-based decentralized cross-chain transfer protocol, Mixin Network, suffered a significant breach, resulting in a loss of $200 million due to a breach of its cloud service provider.
Another major attack took place on September 12, when cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx experienced a suspected attack following a substantial outflow from four of its hot wallets. This breach resulted in losses exceeding $53.1 million across the hot wallets.
Most recently, Stars Arena, a social platform supported by Avalanche’s Contract Chain, fell victim to a significant security breach.
Despite these incidents, it is worth noting that the crypto exchange HTX, which experienced a security breach in late September resulting in the loss of $8 million worth of crypto assets, has managed to recover the stolen funds.
Häufig gestellte Fragen (FAQs)
- Wer ist Nelly?
Nelly ist ein amerikanischer Rapper mit einer erfolgreichen Karriere, die acht Studioalben und zahlreiche Auszeichnungen, darunter drei Grammy Awards und neun Billboard Music Awards, umfasst. - Was ist Scam Sniffer?
Scam Sniffer ist eine angesehene webbasierte Sicherheitslösung, die dabei hilft, Betrügereien im Internet aufzudecken und Nutzer vor Phishing-Angriffen zu schützen. -
Wie viele Hacks gab es im dritten Quartal 2023?
Im dritten Quartal 2023 wurden laut einem Bericht von Immunefi 76 Hacks auf Krypto- und Web3-Projekte und -Firmen gemeldet. Dies ist eine signifikante Zunahme im Vergleich zu den 30 Hacks im gleichen Zeitraum im Jahr 2022. -
Welche anderen Vorfälle gab es in diesem Zeitraum?
Abgesehen von Nellys gehacktem Twitter-Account gab es auch andere wichtige Vorfälle. Der Mixin Network-Angriff am 23. September führte zu einem Verlust von 200 Millionen US-Dollar aufgrund eines Einbruchs des Cloud-Service-Providers. Die Kryptowährungsbörse CoinEx wurde ebenfalls am 12. September einem vermuteten Angriff ausgesetzt, bei dem über 53,1 Millionen US-Dollar gestohlen wurden. -
Hat HTX die gestohlenen Gelder wiedererlangt?
Ja, obwohl HTX Ende September von einem Sicherheitsvorfall betroffen war und Vermögenswerte im Wert von 8 Millionen US-Dollar gestohlen wurden, ist es ihnen gelungen, die gestohlenen Gelder zurückzugewinnen.
Fazit
Die Hacking- und Betrugsvorfälle im Kryptoraum nehmen zu und erfordern daher eine erhöhte Vorsicht von Nutzern. Sowohl Prominente als auch Kryptounternehmen sind Ziel solcher Angriffe. Es ist wichtig, auf verdächtige Nachrichten und Links zu achten und nur auf vertrauenswürdige Quellen zu vertrauen, um potenzielle Betrugsversuche zu erkennen und zu vermeiden.
