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Yat Siu X Account Hacked: Animoca Brands Solana Token Launch Is Fake

Hackers gained access to Animoca Brands' co-founder Yat Siu X account promoting fake token launch on Solana and stealing investor funds.
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Yat Siu X Account Hacked: Animoca Brands Solana Token Launch Is Fake

Highlights

  • Yat Siu's X account promoted fake token launch on Solana, with Animoca Brands' asking users to stay vigilant.
  • Animoca Brands co-founder had recently been active on X, promoting the MOCA Coin.
  • Blockchain investigator ZachXBT raised concerns over the lack of security measures on Yat Siu's account.

The X account of Animoca Brands executive chairman Yat Siu has been compromised while promoting a fake Solana token launch. As a result, the hackers are promoting suspicious tokens and contracts under the guise of “Animoca Brands issuing new coins”. Mocaverse conducted an investigative survey of the matter and found that this was a case of “stolen identity” despite 2FA authentication set up in place on Siu’s X account.

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Yat Siu X Account Promotes Fake Solana-based Tokens

The X Account of Yat Siu, founder of Animoca Brands, was compromised promoting a fake token launch on the Solana blockchain. The Web3 platform took cognizance of the matter immediately that there was no official token launch of NFT launch by them. Thus, it has asked users not to engage with any such posts on Yat Siu’s X timeline.

Mocaverse has come with details regarding the matter that the hackers managed to breach the account despite security standards like 2FA being in place. They noted:

“The evidence seems to suggest that this was a case of stolen identity as the account had standard security implementations (such as 2FA). Stronger security approaches are being considered and implemented”.

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Animoca Brands Co-Founder Faces Tough Questions

Blockchain security investigator ZachXBT has raised concerns over the compromised X account of Animoca Brands’ co-founder. He questioned why didn’t Yat Siu use advanced security measures, such as a hardware security key, to protect his account.

A day before Christmas, ZachXBT had flagged concerns with a pattern identification wherein a threat actor uses phishing emails to gain access to high-profile accounts. “Just yesterday, I warned about phishing emails targeting Siu, likely linked to today’s breach,” ZachXBT noted.

Reportedly, the same scammer has stolen more than $500,000 over the past month by compromising more than 15 X accounts including the likes of Kick, Cursor, Alex Blania, The Arena, and Brett. This phishing scam involves impersonating the X team to steal credentials and further launch fraudulent meme coins.

In recent days, Yat Siu has been active on the X platform while shilling MOCA Coin during this period, which made him the prime target for hackers. As a result, the MOCA price surged all the way to $0.50 on Christmas day with a 200% surge on the weekly chart. However, the MOCA price has retraced nearly 30% from the top and is currently trading at $0.35, down 6% as of press time.

Earlier this year, Animoca Brands co-founder said that he sees NFTs and Web3 gaming as key drivers of a transformation in digital ownership. He highlights the convergence of meme coins and NFTs, with technologies like the Ton protocol fostering synergies across the blockchain ecosystem.

Last week, hackers gained access to Vivek Ramaswamy’s X account while promoting a fake collaboration between the Department of Government Efficiency (D.O.G.E) and USUAL stablecoin.

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Bhushan Akolkar

Bhushan is a seasoned crypto writer with over eight years of experience spanning more than 10,000 contributions across multiple platforms like CoinGape, CoinSpeaker, Bitcoinist, Crypto News Flash, and others. Being a Fintech enthusiast, he loves reporting across Crypto, Blockchain, DeFi, Global Macros with a keen understanding in financial markets. 

He is committed to continuous learning and stays motivated by sharing the knowledge he acquires. In his free time, Bhushan enjoys reading thriller fiction novels and occasionally explores his culinary skills. Bhushan has a bachelors degree in electronics engineering, however, his interest in finance and economics drives him to crypto and blockchain.

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