- Hacking Incident
- Why Scammers Use Social Media For Promotion
- Other Market News
McDonald's official Instagram account was hacked by bad actors to promote a cryptocurrency scam based on the Solana blockchain.
Hacking Incident
As per sources, McDonald's official Instagram account was hacked by bad actors to promote a cryptocurrency project based on the Solana chain. X user Timo Bullt from Crypto Insiders noted: “The official Instagram account of McDonald was hacked to promote $GRIMACE a crypto scam based on Solana chain.” The promoted cryptocurrency was named after McDonald's character GRIMACE. Screenshots of the profile highlight the bio, which stated that the fraud was a rug-pull, resulting in $700k losses. An Indian flag accompanied the bio, raising speculations about the country's connection to the scam. Following the hack, no new posts have been made by McDonald’s. As of writing, the Instagram account has 5.1 million followers globally.
Why Scammers Use Social Media For Promotion
Hacks, scams, and frauds are becoming quite common in the broader crypto space, mainly backed by social media promotions. Social platforms enable bad actors to reach a broader audience easily. In the past few years, hacking social profiles of leading brands, celebrities, sportspersons, and politicians has surged over 150%. Earlier this week, Matthew Perry’s X account was hacked for raising donations in cryptocurrencies. In July 2024, the X account of American singer and rapper Doja Cat was hacked by an anonymous hacker to promote a SOL-based memecoin. Following the hack, the bio and other personal details of Doja were changed, and the hacker posted around 20 posts promoting the purchase of $DOJA. Social media hacks are growing constantly, particularly with advancing technologies.
Other Market News
On August 22, 2024, Todayq reported that Bitfarms Ltd is acquiring Stronghold Digital Mining in a $175 million deal. On August 21, 2024, Tether, the issuer of USDT, revealed plans to launch a stablecoin pegged with the traditional currency of the UAE. On August 21, 2024, NFT "gETH Locked Deposit #158" became one of the most expensive NFTs sold for $256,512.86. At press time, the cryptocurrency market capitalization was $2.15 trillion, with an intraday addition of 2.09%. The market’s trading volume surged over 18% in the past 24 hours, reaching $70.12 billion. Bitcoin’s price also reflected bullish momentum, adding 2.53% to reach $60,964.
The incident with McDonald's Instagram account highlights the growing threat of crypto scams via social media. Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve despite challenges.
