MicroStrategy’s social media presence was compromised when its X account fell victim to hackers promoting a fraudulent airdrop scam. The incident occurred during Asia time, with followers being misled to a phishing site masquerading under the domain “Microstralegy.” The site falsely advertised an airdrop for a nonexistent “MSTR token.” The deceptive posts have since been removed, and MicroStrategy has yet to issue a formal statement regarding the breach. It is speculated that the hack could have led to losses amounting to approximately half a million dollars from the compromised X account.
This security breach echoes a previous incident on January 9, involving the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) X account. In that instance, scammers posted a fake announcement, purportedly from SEC Chair Gary Gensler, about the approval of Bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The fraudulent message was quickly taken down. Investigations by X Reviews revealed that the breach was due to the absence of two-factor authentication (2FA) on the SEC’s account, rather than a direct attack on X’s infrastructure.
Confusion ensued when the SEC’s website temporarily went offline following the faux announcement. The downtime fueled skepticism about the veracity of the Bitcoin spot ETF approvals, compounded by the recent hack of the SEC’s X account. However, the website’s swift restoration confirmed the legitimacy of the spot Bitcoin ETF approvals.
In a related incident in January, CoinGecko, a cryptocurrency data aggregator, briefly fell prey to a phishing attack. Hackers posted a misleading link on CoinGecko’s X account, falsely advertising a token airdrop for a so-called CoinGecko token, named GCKO. The fraudulent announcement claimed GCKO could be utilized for API service payments, akin to the cryptocurrency ANKR. CoinGecko promptly addressed the issue, removing the deceptive post and cautioning users against engaging with dubious content.
Amid these security concerns, MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin investment strategy remains unwavering. The company’s investment in Bitcoin has surpassed $10 billion, with a portfolio exceeding 190,000 BTC as Bitcoin’s value ascends above $50,000. Since its initial foray into the Bitcoin market in August 2020, MicroStrategy has significantly expanded its BTC holdings, persevering through the challenges of the early 2022 bear market. Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy’s executive chairman and co-founder, continues to advocate for Bitcoin, recently suggesting a robust demand for Bitcoin ETFs that has been building for over a decade.
