Popular YouTuber Jake Koehler (aka Scuba Jake) has disclosed the hacking of his channel with over 13 million subscribers and 1.75 billion views since its establishment in 2011.
The crypto fraudsters took control of the channel on September 9 and tried to defraud subscribers with a bogus giveaway involving Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).
An analysis by the financial news and crypto analysis blog Finbold shows that fraudsters siphoned 1.01 BTC, equivalent to nearly $21,000 in a fake crypto lottery. The investigation relied on QR codes published by scammers for subscribers to scan before sending cryptocurrencies.
The shared Bitcoin wallet recorded four transactions and received a total of 1,0107 BTC. That’s the same amount the crypto scammers siphoned from Jake’s subscribers, but it can be much higher as the fraudsters may have switched wallets during the live broadcast, Blockchain.com reported.
The scam impersonated other fraudulent incidents on YouTube where scammers utilize an old interview involving a famous personality in crypto circles, re-post it as a live stream, and advertise the fake giveaway in the information section. It is believed that scammers opt for the live option because it offers more credibility.
How fraudsters targeted Scuba Jack subscribers
Under the crypto scam, the fraudsters changed the channel’s name from ‘DALLMYD’ to ‘MicroStargey US,’ replicating the crypto-friendly American business intelligence company MicroStrategy.
Subsequently, the scammers conducted at least two live streams of an old video involving former MicroStrategy’s CEO Michael Saylor. In this case, the scammers lured innocent subscribers into sending cryptocurrency, thinking they would receive a prize from Saylor or higher returns. Currently, the channel had been restored, with Jack confirming the same via an Instagram story on September 10.
Scammers leveraging YouTube to launch crypto scams
The scammers are exploiting the YouTube platform to target high-profile individuals and organizations. Earlier this year in May, the crypto scammers employed a “double your funding” scheme to lure their victims with the promise of high Bitcoin profits. Millions of dollars were stolen with the help of fake endorsements from the prominent faces of Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey, and Cathie Wood.
The unknown fraudsters made more than $1.3 million in just a few weeks after re-streaming an edited model of an old live panel dialogue on cryptocurrency with Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey, and Cathie Wood at Ark Invest’s “The ₿ Word” convention.
Furthermore, research by antivirus software firm Kaspersky disclosed that besides targeting YouTube channels, fraudsters are increasingly prowling the comments section under videos to promote fake crypto services while offering low prices for certain currencies. The hackers usually target top-trending videos and leave comments promoting a fake “breach” in the crypto market with enticing statistics.
