On August 28, French soccer star Kylian Mbappé's X account was hacked, with hackers using the platform to promote a Solana-based token called MBAPPE.
Account Hacking
Shortly after the fraudulent posts appeared on Mbappé’s account, the MBAPPE token experienced a dramatic surge in market capitalization, briefly reaching $460 million, according to DEX screener.
Consequences
However, this rise was short-lived, as the token’s value rapidly plummeted in a classic pump-and-dump scheme, leading to significant losses for many crypto traders. Blockchain analytics firm Lookonchain reported that one investor lost over $1 million after buying 7,156 SOL worth of the MBAPPE token, which rapidly decreased in value to just $9,200.
Other Celebrity Account Hacks
In June, rapper 50 Cent’s X account was hacked to promote a fake cryptocurrency called GUNIT, leading to another pump-and-dump scam. Also in June, Metallica’s X account was hacked to promote a Solana token called METAL, with scammers making false claims about partnerships with Ticketmaster and MoonPay.
Mbappé’s representatives have yet to comment on the breach, and it remains unclear how the account was compromised.
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