Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Prosecutors Said A 17-Year-Old And Two Others Hacked All Those Famous Twitter Accounts In A Bitcoin Scam

“These crimes were perpetrated using the names of famous people and celebrities, but they’re not the primary victims here," prosecutors said.
Three people, including two teens, have been charged for their alleged roles in a wide-ranging Twitter hack that compromised the accounts of presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, former president Barack Obama, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, and other prominent figures in order to promote a bitcoin scam, authorities announced Friday.

Florida prosecutors said Graham Ivan Clark, 17, of Tampa, was the "mastermind" of the July 15 hack and is facing 30 felony charges, including 10 counts of fraudulent use of personal information and 17 counts of communications fraud. Clark was arrested early Friday, according to the Hillsborough County State Attorney's office.

In addition to Clark, federal authorities in the Northern District of California also charged Mason Sheppard, 19, of Bognor Regis in the United Kingdom with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and the intentional access of a protected computer. Nima Fazeli, a 22-year-old in Orlando, was charged with one count of aiding and abetting the intentional access of a protected computer in connection to the scam.

“These crimes were perpetrated using the names of famous people and celebrities, but they’re not the primary victims here. This ‘Bit-Con’ was designed to steal money from regular Americans from all over the country, including here in Florida," State Attorney Andrew Warren said in a statement. "This massive fraud was orchestrated right here in our backyard, and we will not stand for that."

Fazeli was arrested Friday and released to home confinement following a court appearance in Florida, according to Abraham Simmons, a spokesperson for the Northern District of California US Attorney's Office. No arrest information was available for Sheppard.

It was unclear whether Clark is also facing federal charges. Federal prosecutors did not identify him in a statement about the charges, noting that "juvenile proceedings in federal court are sealed to protect the identity of the juvenile," and that the federal government had referred the juvenile to Warren's office.

Simmons told BuzzFeed News he could not comment on the issue.

According to prosecutors, the perpetrators of the hack received more than $100,000 in Bitcoin as a result of the scam, which involved hacking the accounts of Obama, Biden, Musk, and other prominent figures, and then posting tweets from their accounts saying that they would double any bitcoin payments sent to the same bitcoin wallet.

Hacked accounts pinned the tweets promoting the giveaway scam to the top of their profiles or retweeted the posts. Other accounts that were hit included rappers Wiz Khalifa and the late XXXTentacion, boxer Floyd Mayweather, and billionaires Jeff Bezos, Michael Bloomberg, and Warren Buffett.

While previous cryptocurrency scams have tended to mimic verified Twitter users by creating accounts that look similar to the real ones, the July 15 scam was different in that the hackers gained access to real, verified accounts to proliferate their scam.

In response to the security threat, Twitter prevented many verified accounts from tweeting for the rest of the day, though the accounts that were affected were still able to like, retweet, and send direct messages.

According to Twitter, the hackers gained access to the social media company's internal network and support tools by targeting "a small number of employees through a phone spear phishing attack." They then used the employees' credentials to target 130 accounts, "ultimately Tweeting from 45, accessing the DM inbox of 36, and downloading the Twitter Data of 7."

"We appreciate the swift actions of law enforcement in this investigation and will continue to cooperate as the case progresses," Twitter's communications team tweeted Friday. "For our part, we are focused on being transparent and providing updates regularly."

The bitcoin wallet associated with the scam address sent or received 426 transfers between July 15 and 16, 415 of which "consisted of transfers from other bitcoin addresses into" the account, according to affidavits filed in federal court. The other 11 transfers were from the wallet associated with the scam address to other bitcoin addresses, "siphoning off 99.74% of the bitcoin deposited" and leaving a balance of just $274.01 in the account.

"No bitcoin was returned to the victims," the documents state.

According to the affidavits, authorities were able to identify the three individuals by tracing messages sent on Discord, an online messaging platform popular with gamers and hackers. The New York Times reported on the hackers' communications shortly after the attack, saying that scheme originated from a "teasing message" from a user named "Kirk."

“I work for Twitter. I can claim any @ for you," Kirk wrote, according to the affidavits.

"Prove it," the second user "Rolex," later identified by authorities as Fazeli, wrote back.

From there, Kirk showed Rolex and another Discord user later identified as Sheppard that he could take control of other people's Twitter accounts. The two then acted as "brokers" for Kirk, advertising "the sale of compromised Twitter accounts," procuring buyers, and "sending criminally derived proceeds from the sale of Twitter accounts to [Kirk] for the exchange for compromised Twitter accounts," according to the affidavits.

“There is a false belief within the criminal hacker community that attacks like the Twitter hack can be perpetrated anonymously and without consequence,” David Anderson, the US Attorney for the Northern District of California, said. “Today’s charging announcement demonstrates that the elation of nefarious hacking into a secure environment for fun or profit will be short-lived. Criminal conduct over the Internet may feel stealthy to the people who perpetrate it, but there is nothing stealthy about it. In particular, I want to say to would-be offenders, break the law, and we will find you.”
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. and Hungarian Officials Talk About Economic Collaboration and Sanctions Strategy
Technology Giants Activate Lobbying Campaigns Against Strict EU Regulations
Pope Francis Admitted to Hospital in Rome Amid Increasing Speculation on Succession
Zelensky Calls on World Leaders to Back Peace as Tensions Rise with Trump
UK Leader Keir Starmer Calls for US Security Guarantee in Ukraine Peace Deal
NATO Chief Urges Higher Defense Expenditure in Europe
The negotiation teams of Trump and Putin meet directly, establishing the groundwork for a significant advancement.
Rubio Touches Down in Riyadh Before Key U.S.-Russia Discussions
Students in Serbian universities Unite to Hold Coordinated Protests for Accountability.
US State Department Removes Taiwan Independence Statement from Website
Abolishing opposition won't protect Germany from Nazism—this is precisely what led Germany to become Nazi!
Transatlantic Gold Rush: Traders Shift Bullion in Response to Tariff Anxieties and Market Instability
Bill Ackman Backs Uber as the Company Shifts Towards Profitability
AI Titans Challenge Nvidia's Supremacy in Light of New Chip Innovations
US and Russian Officials to Meet in Saudi Arabia Over Ending Ukraine Conflict. Ukraine and European leaders – who profit from this war – excluded from the negotiations.
Macron Calls for Urgent Summit as Ukraine Conflict Business Model is Threatened
Trump’s Defense Secretary: Ukraine Won’t Join NATO or Regain Lost Territories
Zelensky Urges Europe to Bolster Its Military in Light of Uncertain US Backing
Chinese Zoo Confesses to Dyeing Donkeys to Look Like Zebras
Elon Musk is Sherlock Holmes - Movie Trailer Parody featuring Donald Trump's Detective
Trump's Greenland Suggestion Sparks Sovereignty Discussions Amid Historical Grievances
OpenAI Board Dismisses Elon Musk's Offer to Acquire the Company.
USAID Uncovered: American Taxpayer Funds Leveraged to Erode Democracy in Europe Until Trump Put a Stop to It.
JD Vance and Scholz Did Not Come Together at the Munich Security Conference.
EU Official Participates in Discussions in Washington Amid Trade Strains
Qatar Contemplates Reducing French Investments Due to PSG Chief Investigation
Germany's Green Agenda Encounters Ambiguity Before Elections
Trump Did Not Notify Germany's Scholz About His Ukraine Peace Proposal.
Munich Car Attack Escalates Migration Discourse Before German Elections
NATO Allies Split on Trump's Proposal for 5% Defense Spending Increase
European Parliament Advocates for Encrypted Messaging to Ensure Secure Communications
Trump's Defense Spending Goal Creates Division Among NATO Partners
French Prime Minister Bayrou Navigates a Challenging Path Amid Budget Preservation and Immigration Discourse
Steering Through the Updated Hierarchy at the European Commission
Parliamentarian Calls for Preservation of AI Liability Directive
Mark Rutte Calls on NATO Allies to Increase Defence Expenditures
Dresden Marks the 80th Anniversary of the World War II Bombing.
Global Community Pledges to Aid Syria's Political Transition
EU Allocates €200 Billion for AI Investments, Introduces €20 Billion Fund for Gigafactories
EU Recognizes Its Inability to Close the USAID Funding Shortfall Due to Stalled US Aid
Commission President von der Leyen Missing from Notre Dame Reopening Due to Last-Minute Cancellation
EU Officializes Disinformation Code for Online Platforms, Omitting X
EU Fails to Fully Implement Key Cybersecurity Directives
EU Under Fire for Simplification Discussions Regarding Corporate Sustainability Reporting
Shein Encountering Further Information Request from the EU During Ongoing Investigation
European Commission Initiates Investigation into Shein as It Aims at Chinese E-Commerce Regulations
German Officials Respond to U.S. Proposal for Peace Talks with Russia
Senate Approves Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Trump and Putin Engage in Discussions on Ukraine Peace Negotiations Amid Worldwide Responses
Honda and Nissan End Merger Talks
×