The Twitter account of Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff was found advertising a gold-branded token as a result of an apparent hacking. His son, crypto enthusiast Spencer Schiff, warned users in a tweet not to follow the link posted by the unknown attackers trying to lure victims using his father’s name.
‘Dad Almost Certainly Hacked,’ Son Tweets After Peter Schiff Launches $GOLD Token on Twitter
Hackers obviously took control of economist Peter Schiff’s Twitter account to promote the supposed launch of a “groundbreaking cryptocurrency token” called $GOLD. A series of tweets posted in the space of a few hours suggested that the digital asset represents tokenized gold and is “a complete and utter gamechanger for gold-backed DeFi” that will “empower the #Web3 community.”
“Claim your $GOLD,” as it is “extremely close to selling out,” the perpetrators of the apparent scam urged followers of Schiff, who is a well-known gold proponent but also a vocal critic of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin (BTC). The posts, which led to the gold.fo domain as seen on the screenshot below, were later deleted.
“Do not click this link,” Schiff’s son Spencer tweeted after seeing the suspicious activity of his father’s account. He also informed the public that Peter is in the U.K. and is not responding to his messages in the early hours on Saturday, local time, concluding that his account was “certainly hacked.”
DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK. My dad is in London and it’s 4 AM over there which means he was almost certainly hacked. He’s not responding to any of my texts. https://t.co/sHvQccCtLp
— Spencer Schiff (@SpencerKSchiff) June 3, 2023
“It is truly amazing to see how empowering the crypto community is on twitter … We are building crypto step-by-step,” the scammers controlling @PeterSchiff wrote in one of the tweets — words that Schiff would hardly type himself.
Peter Schiff has been a long-time crypto skeptic, regarding Bitcoin in particular which he has described as a tulip mania bubble and a Ponzi scheme, an asset with no intrinsic value. At the same time, the American stock broker has been an ardent advocate of gold.
Nevertheless, the financial commentator announced last week his participation in an art sale featuring non-fungible tokens (NFTs) minted on the Bitcoin blockchain. The surprising move sparked speculations that he might have changed his mind about crypto.
However, Schiff took to Twitter to point out that the collection, to be auctioned in June, is a “tribute to gold” and that he is “still not a member of that club.” Unlike his father, Spencer Schiff is a supporter of cryptocurrencies who describes himself as a Bitcoiner.
What are your thoughts on the hacking attack on Peter Schiff’s Twitter account? Share them in the comments section below.
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