X Blames SEC For Hacked Account That Led To Fake Announcement Of Spot Bitcoin ETF Approvals, Says Regulator Didn’t Have 2FA

Social media platform X put the blame on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the account breach that led to a fake announcement of the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs (exchange-traded funds).

“Based on our investigation, the compromise was not due to any breach of X’s systems, but rather due to an unidentified individual obtaining control over a phone number associated with the @SECGov account through a third party,” said the X safety team. “We can also confirm that the account did not have two-factor authentication enabled at the time the account was compromised.”

The SEC Account Compromised Through A SIM Swap Attack

The unidentified actor gained control of a phone number associated with the X account, which then gave the hacker access to the SEC’s account, X said. This type of hack is referred to as a SIM swap hack.

A SIM swap hack is a form of identity theft where an attacker takes over a victim’s phone. This then gives the attacker access to the person’s social media, as well as their bank and cryptocurrency accounts.

In this case, the hacker was likely able to convince a third-party telecommunications provider to give them control of the phone number tied to the SEC’s X account. 

The SEC said it will work with law enforcement agenices and its partners across government to investigate the matter and determine the appropriate next steps relating to both the unauthorized access and any related misconduct.

The SEC Post Caused A BTC Rollercoaster

The @SECGov twitter account was compromised, and an unauthorized tweet was posted. The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products.

— Gary Gensler (@GaryGensler) January 9, 2024

The fake X post caused BTC to surge to a 24-hour high of $47,680, according to CoinGecko data.  SEC Chair Gary Gensler quickly clarified that the SEC had not yet approved a spot Bitcoin ETF, with the price then plunging back to $45,668.33 as of 5:00 am EST.

Related Articles: