Crypto scammers get into OpenAI’s newsroom

Crypto scammers have once again targeted a high-profile account on the X platform, this time focusing on OpenAI, which has become a victim for the second time in just a few days.

Late Monday evening (UTC), scammers hijacked the newsroom account of the AI giant responsible for developing the ChatGPT platform. The fraudsters posted a message announcing the fake OPENAI token, claiming it would "bridge the gap between AI and blockchain technology." They further stated that all OpenAI users were eligible to "claim a piece of $OPENAI’s initial supply" and that it would provide access to future beta programs.

As is typical in such scams, the post included a link to a phishing site designed to trick potential victims into connecting their crypto wallets, enabling the thieves to steal their assets.

Additionally, the hackers disabled comments on the post, claiming it was done "due to malicious links."

At the time of this writing, the post had already been removed, and the OpenAI team appears to have regained control of the account.

Just a few days earlier, OpenAI researcher Jason Wei’s X account was also seemingly hacked, posting the same fraudulent message about the fake OPENAI token. Similarly, in June 2023, OpenAI’s CTO, Mira Murati, had her X account compromised, with scammers pushing the same token, as it reached around 80,000 users on the platform before the post was taken down.

OpenAI has never announced any plans to launch a crypto token. However, the company’s CEO, Sam Altman, is involved in developing his own crypto project, Worldcoin (WLD), which has drawn controversy for collecting biometric data.

In either case, the scammers’ message about a "bridge between AI and blockchain" might sound convincing to many, as this topic is increasingly discussed in bitcoin (BTC) and crypto communities. Many believe that AI agents could use BTC and other crypto assets to fulfill tasks, which might be easier than relying on traditional financial infrastructure.

Learn more about the possible intersection of BTC and AI here.