A man has lost £407,000 in a Bitcoin scam that used a fake Elon Musk Twitter account to promote a fraudulent giveaway. The victim, identified only as Sebastian, said he was tricked by a professional-looking website that promised to double his cryptocurrency investment.
Sebastian, from Cologne, Germany, received a Twitter notification that appeared to be from Elon Musk. It contained a link to a website advertising a Bitcoin giveaway, supposedly run by Tesla. The site featured a countdown timer and invited participants to send between 0.1 and 20 Bitcoin, promising to return double the amount.
After verifying a blue checkmark next to Musk's name, Sebastian sent 10 Bitcoin, worth approximately £430,000. He waited for the promised return, but when the timer expired, he realised the giveaway was fake. 'I thought I'd just thrown away the gamechanger for my family, my early retirement fund,' he told the BBC.
Blockchain analysis firm Whale Alert tracked the stolen Bitcoin as it was cashed out anonymously days later. The company says scammers are making record profits, with over $18m stolen in the first three months of 2021 alone. Whale Alert founder Frank van Weert noted that the scams have been ongoing since 2018, with criminals using stolen verified accounts to appear legitimate.
Sebastian reported the scam to authorities but has not recovered his funds. He warned others to be cautious of such offers, saying, 'I felt so stupid. I hope no one else falls for this.'
