{"id":35616,"date":"2020-06-19T13:46:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-19T13:46:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/3962f792-5c40-491f-a3c7-f1b095b3c6d6"},"modified":"2020-06-19T13:46:00","modified_gmt":"2020-06-19T13:46:00","slug":"elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.threatshub.org\/blog\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/","title":{"rendered":"Elon Musk Bitcoin vanity addresses used to scam users out of $2 million"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet2.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/dc41aa8f-4215-4151-ad90-b44cf4efca95\/musk-scam.jpg\" class alt=\"musk-scam.jpg\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Bitcoin giveaway scams have been around for more than two years, but a new twist in tactics has helped scammers make more than $2 million over the past two months from Elon Musk&#8217;s name.<\/p>\n<p>The new trick involves the use of Bitcoin vanity addresses in order to give the scam more credibility in the eyes of a suspicious user.<\/p>\n<p>Vanity addresses are Bitcoin addresses that incorporate a custom word in the address itself &#8212; such as &#8220;<em>1<strong>Musk<\/strong>PsV7BnuvMuHGWmmXUyXKjxp3vLZX6<\/em>&#8221; or &#8220;<em>1<strong>ELonMUsK<\/strong>ZzpVr5Xok8abiXhhqGbdrnK5C<\/em>.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Over the past month, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/justin_lister\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-component=\"externalLink\">Justin Lister<\/a>, CEO of cyber-security firm <a href=\"https:\/\/adaptiv.ltd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">Adaptiv<\/a>, has been tracking the use of Bitcoin vanity addresses abusing Elon Musk&#8217;s name in giveaway scams.<\/p>\n<p>Lister has been collecting the addresses with the help of BitcoinAbuse, a website where users can report Bitcoin addresses abused in ransomware, extortions, cybercrime, and online scams.<\/p>\n<p>In a spreadsheet shared with ZDNet earlier this week, the Adaptiv CEO said he tracked down 66 addresses that have been reported by scammed users on BitcoinAbuse.<\/p>\n<p>Lister said the 66 addresses received more than 201 in Bitcoin since being created in late April 2020.<\/p>\n<section class=\"sharethrough-top\" data-component=\"medusaContentRecommendation\" data-medusa-content-recommendation-options=\"{&quot;promo&quot;:&quot;promo_zd_recommendation_sharethrough_top_in_article_desktop&quot;,&quot;spot&quot;:&quot;dfp-in-article&quot;}\">\n<\/section>\n<p>Since receiving the spreadsheet from Lister earlier this week, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitcoinabuse.com\/reports\/1MuskPsV7BnuvMuHGWmmXUyXKjxp3vLZX6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">67th Elon Musk vanity address<\/a> was also submitted to the BitcoinAbuse website. This vanity address held an additional 13.9 Bitcoin, which brought the total to 214 Bitcoin, a sum that now stands over $2 million at today&#8217;s exchange rate.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/\" class=\"lazy\" alt=\"elon-musk-scams.jpg\" height=\"auto\" width=\"370\" data-original=\"https:\/\/zdnet2.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2020\/06\/19\/f45994fd-4853-44b5-be73-9cd1c12c95ca\/resize\/370xauto\/ab5404558986210ea04e41c3bb1c0fc9\/elon-musk-scams.jpg\"><\/span><noscript><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet2.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2020\/06\/19\/f45994fd-4853-44b5-be73-9cd1c12c95ca\/resize\/370xauto\/ab5404558986210ea04e41c3bb1c0fc9\/elon-musk-scams.jpg\" class alt=\"elon-musk-scams.jpg\" height=\"auto\" width=\"370\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript> <span class=\"credit\">Image: ZDNet, via Justin Lister<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The $2 million sum is enormous if we take into consideration the low effort required to run one of these scams.<\/p>\n<p>Because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitcoinabuse.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">BitcoinAbuse<\/a> also requires users to add a short description of where they encountered the Bitcoin address, this made investigating the source of some of these scams much easier.<\/p>\n<p>Based on ZDNet&#8217;s review, most of the Bitcoin vanity URLs had been shared with the help of YouTube live streams.<\/p>\n<p>Hackers hijacked high follower-count YouTube accounts, changed the account name and its graphics to mimic the account of a celebrity or a trusted brand, and then launched a live stream to broadcast their scam.<\/p>\n<p>The scam relied on tricking users into sending Bitcoin to the scammers&#8217; address, on the promise of doubling their profits, part of the giveaway &#8212; usually organized on the occasion of an important event in the celebrity\/brand&#8217;s history.<\/p>\n<p>In our investigation, we found that hackers had either renamed the channels to Elon Musk&#8217;s name, the SpaceX brand, or news outlets such as Euronews, seeking credibility.<\/p>\n<p>The Bitcoin address was usually embedded either in the live stream itself, and users had to scan it with a QR code reader, or users were asked to visit a dedicated &#8220;giveaway&#8221; website.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/\" class=\"lazy\" alt=\"musk-scams.png\" data-original=\"https:\/\/zdnet3.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/d177b59c-036b-405d-a5f4-958b317e899b\/musk-scams.png\"><\/span><noscript><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet3.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/d177b59c-036b-405d-a5f4-958b317e899b\/musk-scams.png\" class alt=\"musk-scams.png\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript> <span class=\"credit\">Image: ZDNet<\/span><\/p>\n<p>But we&#8217;re not reporting on something new here, with multiple of these fake Elon Musk giveaway live streams making the news this month alone [<a href=\"https:\/\/futurism.com\/fake-spacex-stream-scamming-bitcoins\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/spacex-bitcoin-scam-btc-giveaway-elon-musk-nasa-launch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">2<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Bitcoin giveaway scams abusing the Elon Musk and SpaceX names have been going on all month, ever since SpaceX and Musk made the news last month for the company&#8217;s first successful rocket launch <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/press-release\/nasa-astronauts-launch-from-america-in-historic-test-flight-of-spacex-crew-dragon\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">carrying a live NASA astronaut crew<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/\" class=\"lazy\" alt=\"btc-scam-video.jpg\" data-original=\"https:\/\/zdnet1.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/0b9688d2-b250-4e31-ac82-d0d2be98429a\/btc-scam-video.jpg\"><\/span><noscript><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet1.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/0b9688d2-b250-4e31-ac82-d0d2be98429a\/btc-scam-video.jpg\" class alt=\"btc-scam-video.jpg\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript> <span class=\"credit\">Image: ZDNet<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Bitcoin and Ethereum giveaway scams have been around since at least February 2018, when <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bleepingcomputer.com\/news\/cryptocurrency\/ethereum-scammers-make-5-000-in-a-night-by-impersonating-celebs-on-twitter\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">the first such case<\/a> was reported. Since then, the trick has gotten old and users have gotten better at spotting the scammers.<\/p>\n<p>The role of the Bitcoin vanity address was to give more credibility to the scam and make it look authentic, similar to how &#8220;verified profiles&#8221; give more authenticity to accounts on social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.<\/p>\n<p>The Bitcoin network doesn&#8217;t have a way to &#8220;verify&#8221; addresses, so vanity addresses, which are hard to come by, are the closest thing to a &#8220;verified&#8221; Bitcoin address.<\/p>\n<p>The trick of using Elon Musk vanity addresses was, obviously, successful, helping crooks net more than $2 million, but it wasn&#8217;t the only one.<\/p>\n<p>ZDNet also found other vanity addresses submitted to the BitcoinAbuse database and reported as being abused in similar YouTube-based giveaway scams.<\/p>\n<p>We similarly found vanity addresses for SpaceX and Bill Gates. Both have been used in similar YouTube-hosted giveaway scams, with the Gates-themed addresses holding more than $100,000 in stolen funds.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/\" class=\"lazy\" alt=\"bill-gates-hijack-1.png\" data-original=\"https:\/\/zdnet3.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/03\/30\/b1af7d41-7c9e-4259-8921-d4ee228dc3ab\/bill-gates-hijack-1.png\"><\/span><noscript><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet3.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/03\/30\/b1af7d41-7c9e-4259-8921-d4ee228dc3ab\/bill-gates-hijack-1.png\" class alt=\"bill-gates-hijack-1.png\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript> <span class=\"credit\">Image: ZDNet<\/span><\/p>\n<p>In addition, we also found another Bitcoin vanity address that was not available on the BitcoinAbuse website. This one had been used for a giveaway scam that tried to take advantage of the recent launch of the Play Station 5 gaming console. Luckily, no user fell victim to such a scam.<\/p>\n<p>Similar scams abusing Linus Torvald and Mark Zuckerberg&#8217;s names have also been reported, along with brands like Facebook, Twitter, and even the UN.<\/p>\n<p>As long as these scams have a giant return-on-investment and crooks make more than they spend setting up the scam, the &#8220;giveaway&#8221; scourge will continue to haunt cryptocurrency owners.<\/p>\n<p>Users should be wary as these scams aren&#8217;t limited to YouTube live streams only, and have been also spotted on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and more recently on TikTok &#8212; similarly by hacking into high-follower profiles and broadcasting the scam for a short period.<\/p>\n<p>In most cases, these scams are powered by hacked accounts sold on hacking forums for prices going from $5 to thousands, depending on the follower count. Taking into account that some scammers are making as much as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bleepingcomputer.com\/news\/security\/fake-elon-musk-twitter-bitcoin-scam-earned-180k-in-one-day\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-component=\"externalLink\">$180,000 a day<\/a>, the scams are most likely to go on for years, or until users stop falling for the scams.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/\" class=\"lazy\" alt=\"account-sellers.png\" data-original=\"https:\/\/zdnet4.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/c4dc342c-e449-4f56-a988-541c0bbf7803\/account-sellers.png\"><\/span><noscript><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img aspect-set\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/zdnet4.cbsistatic.com\/hub\/i\/2020\/06\/19\/c4dc342c-e449-4f56-a988-541c0bbf7803\/account-sellers.png\" class alt=\"account-sellers.png\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/noscript> <span class=\"credit\">Image: ZDNet<\/span> READ MORE <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zdnet.com\/article\/elon-musk-bitcoin-vanity-addresses-used-to-scam-users-out-of-2-million\/#ftag=RSSbaffb68\">HERE<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While Bitcoin giveaway scams have been around for more than two years, new trick helps scammers net massive profits.<br \/>\nREAD MORE HERE&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":35617,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35616","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-zdnet-security"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Elon Musk 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