OpenAI’s X Account Hacked
In a really concerning incident related to online fraud, crypto scammers have managed to compromise the official press account on X belonging to OpenAI. This is the latest in a string of similar hacks targeting high-profile tech figures and companies-a surefire sign that no one is safe from the growing threat of cryptocurrency fraud.
The scam happened in the late Monday afternoon when hackers used the freshly minted OpenAI Newsroom account, setup to distribute product and policy-related announcements, to promote a sham OpenAI-branded blockchain token called “$OPENAI.” The fake announcement said all users of OpenAI could claim a portion of that sham token, adding the token would grant holders access to all beta releases in the future.
Scam of Fraudulent Nature on X
That post was full of errors, including spelling “OPENAI” as “OPEANAI,” invited users to a phishing site in order to steal the cryptocurrency. The fake site used a suspicious URL: “token-openai.com”, which would act almost intuitively as a red flag for any savvy user of the net. In any case, this scam was for those who did not know details about how URLs should look.
The phishing site has asked victims to connect their cryptocurrency wallets through a big “CLAIM $OPENAI” button, in the typical move of fraudsters to get the login credentials of victims. Once connected, the scammers could drain the wallet of the unsuspecting user for NFTs, tokens, and other digital wealth. The attack has similarities to other phishing campaigns targeting crypto users.
While shocking to be sure, this is far from the first time OpenAI-associated accounts have fallen to hackers for such scams.
History of Hacks
This is not the first time OpenAI’s name has been dragged into the crypto scam arena. In June this year, Mira Murati, the CTO of OpenAI, had her X account hacked to promote the same fake $OPENAI token. Within just a few months, similar attacks were perpetrated against Jakub Pachocki, the chief scientist at OpenAI, and Jason Wei, one of the well-recognized researchers at the company. Both accounts were utilized to post scam messages almost identical to the ones seen this week.
In Murati’s case, scammers apparently made use of a crypto drainer tool, which, upon the users’ connecting to the fake site, redirected their digital assets, such as NFTs and cryptocurrencies, into the wallets of the scammers. Crypto-scam tools like that are going to become more common, since fraudsters will be continuing to look for easy ways to steal from unsuspecting users.
The Bigger Picture: Cryptocurrency Scams on the Rise
This latest hijacking of OpenAI’s press account is only the tip of the iceberg. Over the past few years, cryptocurrency scams have cropped up everywhere-from tech firms to the average user. Their list of victims includes Apple and Elon Musk-and even Joe Biden. In 2020, scammers compromised their X accounts to shill for a bitcoin wallet, promising that any payments sent its way would be doubled in value and returned-a classic scam.
In fact, the FBI estimates cryptocurrency fraud bilked Americans out of an estimated $5.6 billion in 2023 alone-a 45% increase over the prior year. And it appears cryptocurrency scams are becoming an even greater threat: More than 50,000 scams were reported during the first six months of 2024, costing consumers close to $2.5 billion. Learn more about protecting your cryptocurrency assets.
The Federal Trade Commission has time and again fired warning salvoes over the growing wave of crypto-related fraud, asking users to be careful with unknown sites and offers that sound too good to be true. Follow crypto scam alerts by FTC here.
What to Watch Out For
The newest OpenAI hack fits a pattern seen in so many phishing campaigns. Here’s how you can avoid falling victim to such scams:
- Watch out for the following: URLs might look very close but a little different from the real one. In this case, the phishing site used “token-openai.com” instead of OpenAI’s legitimate website.
- Beware of Suspicious Promotions: If it sounds too good to be true, then most likely it isn’t. A company such as OpenAI would never hand out random offers of tokens or beta access without clearly announcing it to its audience.
- Don’t Link Your Wallet: Be very skeptical when you’re asked to link your cryptocurrency wallet with random sites. These acts are used by scammers to access funds.
- Enable 2-Factor Authentication: Two-factor authentication protects your social media/crypto account in such a manner that unauthorized access is reduced.
- As the cryptocurrency space further integrates with and into mainstream financial systems, the potential for scams will continue to grow. Whether you’re new to crypto or an experienced investor, education is your best defense. Learn more about securing your digital assets.
Conclusion: A Worrying Trend
The hacking of the OpenAI press account on X is a reminder that even extremely reputed organizations can be vulnerable in the digital age. Compromised social media accounts to highly engineered phishing websites-the world of cryptocurrency is full of risks. It becomes paramount that individuals and companies take steps necessary to protect themselves from this growing threat.
Although OpenAI and X have yet to comment on the latest breach, one thing is crystal clear: crypto scammers are getting more brazen and sophisticated by the day. The long and short of this is that being vigilant and suspicious of unsolicited promises is called for-so one doesn’t get financially hurt by further attacks.
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