A tantalizing $25 million cryptocurrency giveaway displayed on the social-media site previously recognized as Twitter, as expected, turned out to be a falsehood. Recent posts on X platform focused on the trending topic in the crypto world: the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), potentially on the verge of transforming into an esteemed conventional financial investment vehicle known as an ETF, following a recent court triumph.
However, the crux of this scheme revolved around a dubious assertion that $25 million of a new token named GBTC – a ticker symbol related to the legitimate $13 billion trust – would be handed out to individuals who access a website mentioned in the post. The account involved in this dubious ploy, bearing the handle @Grayscale_FND, has no associations with the actual company Grayscale, as corroborated by a Grayscale representative; hence, the offer is clearly a sham.
Earlier, when Twitter was not yet purchased and renamed X by Elon Musk, a blue checkmark served as proof of account verification, implying a certain level of analysis and vetting process. Today, it mainly signifies an $8 monthly subscription, contributing to an escalation of cryptocurrency scams. X now hosts numerous blue-checked accounts.
Contrary to @Grayscale_FND, the authentic @Grayscale X account boasts a gold checkmark, a status reserved for corporations or “official” entities. As such, X users should be mindful of this differentiation to evade falling prey to scams. Yet, this is not foolproof as many could still be deceived by @Grayscale_FND’s usage of the legitimate Grayscale’s logo.
This fraudulent activity came into light when a CoinDesk journalist was spammed with posts from @Grayscale_FND on X. Notably, there’s no direct line of communication available with the account, as it doesn’t accept messages from accounts it does not follow.
Both Grayscale and CoinDesk are subsidiaries of the Digital Currency Group. In response to attempts to reach X for comments, their generic automated reply was, “Busy now, please check back later.” Liabilities like these test our trust in the Internet and highlight the utmost importance of firewall and cybersecurity for our digital assets.
Source: Coindesk
