The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA), Belgium’s financial regulatory agency, has published its mid-2024 report, highlighting a significant increase in fraudulent activities, particularly involving trading platforms and cryptocurrency scams. Nearly half of the 1,332 consumer reports received in the first half of 2024 pertained to these scams, reflecting a 44% increase from the same […]
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FTC Warns: Social Media Investment Scams on the Rise
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has warned consumers about a surge in social media investment scams, especially in cryptocurrency. These scams involve fraudulent messages claiming guaranteed high returns with little or no risk. The FTC advises ignoring such messages and reminds consumers that all investments carry inherent risks. FTC Issues Warning on Social Media […]
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Master Of Scams: Metallica’s Hacked X Account Promotes Solana Token
Nearly a month after Caitlyn Jenner launched her JENNER token, the celebrity memecoin frenzy continues. This time, iconic heavy metal band Metallica joined the list of public figures involved with Solana tokens. However, the band’s participation in the crypto industry was yet another X account hack targeting investors.
Solana-Based METAL Takes Over Crypto
The iconic heavy metal band Metallica recently announced a collaboration with the popular videogame Fortnite. The collaboration seemingly aims to bring the band’s music to a new demographic of music enjoyers.
Nonetheless, the announcement was eclipsed by the Metallica X account’s failed “attempt” to “join” a different community. On Tuesday night, the account shared a post offering a Solana-based token to their fans.
The post announced the launch of METAL, an alleged collaboration between the band and Ticketmaster. The token was described as a “dynamic new token on the Solana blockchain poised to revolutionize how you experience events and online shopping.”
Unlike other celebrity memecoin scams, the token offered utility from the get-go. Users who used METAL to buy concert tickets would receive exclusive Ticketmaster discounts of up to 25%. METAL holders would also get the chance to win free tickets through “exclusive airdrops.”
The X posts announced three signed “insanely rare Metal Token Xbox Series X consoles” for the token holders. Additionally, it promised the METAL token would “seamlessly integrate into your shopping experience, powered by the reliability of Solana for effortless transactions.”
Master Of Tokens Or Master Of Nothing?
Metallica fans and crypto investors quickly became wary of the posts. Users began debating whether the announcements were fake and if the account had been hacked. One X user suggested the band would not “ruin their reputation by launching a shitcoin” and rugging it.
Despite the user’s initial suspicion, several users fell into the meticulously planned scam. As a community member pointed out, the graphics for the posts, and the posts themselves, were “pretty well done.” The attackers also assured users that METAL was not a scam and the band was “in it for the long haul.”
The hacker also claimed that the crypto payment company MoonPay was collaborating with the band. However, the company quickly denied their involvement, stating that the responsible for the hack was not the master of puppets but the “master of scams.”
As an X user pointed out, the Solana-based token’s market capitalization surpassed million. However, it quickly plummeted after the band recovered access to the X account and deleted the promotional posts.
Nonetheless, one investor managed to become a master of tokens. Online reports revealed that a trader turned a .380 investment into ,600. The “lucky” investor bought the tokens at a ,000 market cap and sold at the high of the scam.
As of this writing, the token is trading at .00002031, a 99.3% decrease from its highest price of .003353. Furthermore, METAL’s market cap is ,000, representing a 9000% drop.
FTC Warns of Crypto Scams From Online Love Interests
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a warning about cryptocurrency romance scammers who offer investment advice. The FTC emphasizes the risks involved and urges immediate reporting and caution to protect others. “They establish an emotional connection with you so you’re more likely to believe that they’re an expert in cryptocurrency investing, for example,” […]
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FBI Warns of Crypto Scams in Fake Work-From-Home Jobs
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Blockchain Sleuth Zackxbt Called out Floyd Mayweather on Token Scams
Blockchain sleuth Zackxbt called out former boxing world champion Floyd “Money” Mayweather about his fraudulent token activities. Answering a now-deleted post on X where Mayweather promoted a Solana address for his token, Zackxbt asked if the boxer deserved a 13th chance, given the numerous failed and disappeared projects he had promoted before. Zackxbt stressed that […]
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Hong Kong Police Warn of Spike in Counterfeit Banknotes Used in Cryptocurrency Scams
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SEC Issues Investor Alert Highlighting 5 Common Crypto Scams
The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy has issued an alert, highlighting five common crypto scams investors should watch out for to avoid losing money. The SEC warns that fraudsters exploit cryptocurrency popularity with sophisticated techniques, making fund recovery difficult. For example, “Fraudsters may conduct pump-and-dump schemes with crypto assets, including so-called ‘memecoins’ that […]
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US Treasury: NFTs and NFT Platforms Highly Susceptible to Fraud and Scams
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