Summary
McDonald’s official Instagram account was hacked by a cryptocurrency scammer, who claimed to have taken thousands of dollars from unsuspecting followers. McDonald’s has since regained control of its profile, but users had already noticed the eerie message shared by the hacker in the account’s bio.
Cyberattackers know no limits when it comes to choosing their next victim, and they sometimes target high-profile platforms. Earlier this year, users saw the prominent marketplaceDKoldies' site get hacked, with an ill-mannered message showing up on users' screens. In recent years, with the increasing popularity of crypto, scammers have also taken to hacking users' social media accounts to promote fake cryptocurrency. This time, it was the famous fast food chain McDonald’s turn to fall victim to a crypto hacker.
On August 21, McDonald’s briefly lost access to its official Instagram account before regaining control over it and restoring the posts and bio to normal. However, fans witnessed the bizarre takeover by a cryptocurrency hacker, who had changed McDonald’s bio and shared two posts under the profile, including a video. As shared byTwitter user unusual_whales, the hacker had advertised a Grimace crypto coin and allegedly scammed $700,000 out of followers through Solana, a blockchain platform for cryptocurrency transactions. Grimace is a character created by McDonald’s to promote some of its products, but the crypto coin was not created by the restaurant. The timing of the scam could not be worse, sinceMcDonald’s most recent Collector Cupsfeature Grimace as one of the stars.
McDonald’s Official Instagram Account Gets Hacked by Crypto Scammer
“Sorry you have just been rug pulled by India_X_Kr3w thank you for the $700,000 in Solana,” read McDonald’s bio during the cyberattack. In crypto, “rug pulling” is when a scammer creates a fake cryptocurrency, excessively promotes it on social media to attract investors, and finally cashes out the earnings, causing the coin’s value to plummet. Considering that McDonald’s has over five million followers on Instagram, it’s likely that many fell for the Grimace coin fraud. This is not the first time a big Instagram profile has suffered a cyberattack like this. In 2022, the famous NFT collectionBored Ape Yatch Club had their account hacked. Similarly, the hacker posted a phishing link through BAYC’s Instagram and followers who entered lost their NFTs.
Although McDonald’s has regained control of its Instagram account and the attack was brief, it’s alarming that such a large platform could be the victim of a cyberattack like this. It goes to prove that any user can be a potential target. The Instagram profile is back to normal, and the restaurant continues to promote its special collaborations. Recently,McDonald’s announced the return ofPokemoncardsin Happy Meals later this year.
