Scammers scam fans with online crypto scam feed
Cybercriminals managed to trick thousands of Apple fans with a fake cryptocurrency authentication during the company’s latest press event, the launch of the iPhone 14.
During Apple’s “Far Out” launch event earlier this week, cybercriminals streamed a parallel video on YouTube purporting to show the incident. In fact, the video featured CEO Tim Cook in an interview with the broadcaster CNN in 2018.
Apple buys Bitcoin
The fraudulent video was saturated with cryptocurrency scam ads, including links to indecent websites. In addition, the crypto featured in the ad was relatively obscure and seemed quite suspicious.
Some ad banners displayed “Apple Buys 100,000 Bitcoins,” while others enticed users to participate in a fake Bitcoin giveaway. The ads also claimed that Apple invested in Bitcoin, when it has already stated that it has not.
The scammers were able to earn revenue both through the clicks generated from the fake live stream and the fake crypto websites.
Top of the charts
Upon closer inspection, the video revealed many errors that are often indicative of fraudulent activity. In addition to featuring the 2018 CNN interview, the video was informally titled “Apple Event Live. Apple CEO Tim Cook: Apple & the Metaverse in 2022.”
The streamer also included the Bitcoin and Ethereum logos in the video stream, obscuring CNN logo with the text “Apple Crypto Event 2022”, and finally adds bold text that reads “URGENT NEWS” at the bottom of the screen. In addition, the streamers site disclosed no official connection with Apple.
Yet, despite the clues, the video still managed to draw 165,000 users, as the fraudsters managed to manipulate YouTube’s algorithm using relevant keywords, hashtags and SEO know-how.
A search on YouTube for “Apple Event” showed that the fake live stream appeared on the first page.
A similar scam took place last year, when Tesla CEO Elon Musk appeared Saturday Night Live. As the billionaire referenced his preferred Dogecoin live on the show, cybercriminals posing as him posted fake gifts online.
Some cryptocurrency holders were lured into sending money to unknown accounts with the assurance of getting back a higher rate of return. Reported losses totaled over $2 million, although initial estimates were as high as $5 million.
Reducing crypto fraud?
Although platforms like YouTube and Twitter have said they would do more to address crypto scams, some recent actions could hinder those efforts. Twitter is currently testing an editing feature for its tweets, which has some wondering if this could further help facilitate all types of fraud.
“Someone will tweet something that says, ‘These two celebrities just started dating,'” Rachel Tobac, an ethical hacker and CEO of SocialProof Security, told the Washington Post. “It goes viral. Fifteen to 20 minutes later they go in and they change it to a crypto scam, a phishing link, vote disinformation.”
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