Cryptocurrency scams involving people posing as prominent figures are an all too common occurrence. On the daily, my YouTube feed sends a fake “Elon Musk BITCOIN giveaway” or a “Tesla BITCOIN giveaway” video my way, with deepfakes of Musk talking about said giveaways becoming notoriously annoying.
Since I regularly intake news surrounding cryptocurrencies, I am well aware of how common such scams are, and how to spot them. However, not everyone falls in the same boat. As reported by The Verge, a fake Tim Cook live stream with over 70k viewers was used to attract attention to a cryptocurrency scam amid the excitement about the company’s ‘Far Out’ event.
Such scams normally attract users by guaranteeing quick returns or airdrops of upcoming tokens, and in yesterday’s case, the stream’s title — “Apple Event Live. Ceo of Apple Tim Cook: Apple & Metaverse in 2022,” might have fooled users who have read leaks and rumours about Apple’s supposed AR/VR headset. Such scams normally send users to a legitimate-looking website where they can buy certain crypto or enter their wallet address to claim airdrops. However, such websites have no backings and the funds you spend there go straight to the scammer’s pocket.
While I did not see the fake stream while it was live, according to The Verge, the stream’s description and title were filled with Apple keywords, which would have pushed it as a recommended video to those who regularly consume content surrounding Apple on YouTube, or to those who were just looking to watch yesterday’s keynote.
The clip used in the fake stream was an old Tim Cook interview given to CNN, with Bitcoin and Ethereum logos added to the stream with the text “URGENT NEWS” at the bottom. The stream was later removed by YouTube, according to The Verge.
It is currently unclear how many people were scammed, and it’s likely that we’ll never know. Scams of such nature take place every day, and it is prudent that you don’t click on any links guaranteeing quick returns on free money. There is no such thing as free money.
Image credit: Shutterstock
Via: The Verge
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