Scammers Hijack Popular YouTube Accounts
| Scammers Hijack Popular YouTube Accounts | |
|---|---|
| Short Title | Scammers Hijack Popular YouTube Accounts for Impersonation and “Bitcoin Giveaway” Fraud |
| Location | Global |
| Date | July 2020 |
| Solove Harm | Insecurity, Appropriation, Distortion |
| Information | Identifying, Authenticating, Physical Characteristics, Public Life, Communication |
| Threat Actors | Google, YouTube LLC, Unidentified scammers |
| Individuals | |
| Affected | Celebrities |
| High Risk Groups | Celebrities, Wealthy |
| Tangible Harms | |
Scammers hacked some popular YouTube accounts and changed their names into celebrities to then post "bitcoin giveaway" fraud.
Description
In July 2020 some YouTube videos were found to falsely using the names of Steve Wozniak and other celebrities—including Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin—to give the scams legitimacy. Distortion
Scammers hijacked popular YouTube accountsInsecurity and change their names so that they appear to be the official accounts of celebrities. They then broadcast a "live" video showing old footage of the celebrity discussing cryptocurrency or related topics. Alongside the footage is text claiming that if someone sends bitcoin to a particular address, the celebrity would send back double the amount. Appropriation
Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, has sued YouTube over the proliferation of "bitcoin giveaway" scam videos. However, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act provides online platforms with broad immunity for user-submitted content. Anticipating this defense, the plaintiffs try to distinguish their lawsuit from run-of-the-mill Section 230 cases. But it's not obvious those arguments will be successful.
Laws and Regulations
Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act