FBI arrested hacker who announced fake bitcoin ETF launch

He’s accused of conspiring to commit aggravated identification theft and entry system fraud.
That day, bitcoin skyrocketed and rose $1,000, however then corrected and misplaced $2,000.

The FBI at the moment introduced the arrest of Eric Council Jr., 25, in Athens, Alabama, for his alleged position in hacking the U.S. Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) account at X, recognized previously as Twitter. This incident, which occurred in January 2024, led to a false announcement that triggered a USD 1,000 improve within the worth of bitcoin (BTC).

Council faces prices of conspiracy to commit aggravated identification theft and entry system fraud. The indictment particulars that on January 9, 2024, Council, together with co-conspirators, took management of the @SECGov account on X and posted a false message on behalf of the company’s president, Gary Gensler, claiming approval of an exchange-traded fund. on the bitcoin trade (ETF).

This false announcement triggered a right away rise within the worth of BTC. The SEC shortly regained management of his account and denied the data, as reported by CriptoNoticias, which led to a subsequent drop of greater than USD 2,000 per bitcoin.

The tactic used for the hack was a SIM swap, a way the place attackers handle to reassign a sufferer’s cellphone quantity to a tool they management. This enables them go two-step authentication, thus accessing delicate accounts.

In response to the accusation, Council used stolen private data to create a faux IDwith which he obtained a brand new SIM card and an iPhone, used to entry the SEC account at X.

FBI Performing Particular Agent in Cost David Geist commented on the case: “The FBI works to determine, disrupt and examine cyber fraud, together with SIM swapping. “This technique is exploited by criminals to entry confidential data and perpetrate crimes just like the one Council tried, manipulating the worldwide monetary market.”

The false announcement not solely affected the cryptocurrency market, but additionally highlighted the vulnerability of the official accounts of presidency entities on social networks.

It’s anticipated that Council Makes Preliminary Look At present within the Northern District of Alabama. In response to the FBI, the prosecution is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Lawyer Kevin Rosenberg and Justice Division trial attorneys Ashley Pungello and Paul Zebb of the Laptop Crimes and Mental Property Part, and Lauren Archer of the Fraud Part.