An Alabama man has been arrested by the FBI for allegedly hacking into the Securities and Exchange Commission’s social media account on X in an attempt to undermine the value of Bitcoin. While the exact evidence that led the FBI to his door is not clear, it is possible that Eric Council Jr. suspected their eventual arrival. reportedly searched on his PC looking for phrases like “SECGOV hack,” “how can I know for sure if I’m being investigated by the FBI,” and “what are the signs that you’re being investigated by law enforcement agencies or the FBI, even if You have not been contacted.”
On January 9, 2024, the SEC’s official X account tweeted “Today, the SEC approves #Bitcoin ETFs for listing on all registered national securities exchanges.” A landmark ruling on whether or not the cryptocurrency could serve as an exchange-traded fund (ETF) has been awaited for months, the results of which would likely increase or decrease at least some of Bitcoin’s value. In the hours following the apparent approval, the crypto’s net value increased by approximately $1,000 per coin. But there was a problem: the SEC hadn’t actually made a decision yet, and the tweet claiming otherwise came from someone who had apparently gained access to the Commission’s social media account.
According to the The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia on Thursday someone hacked @SECGov using a so-called ‘SIM swap’. A Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card is a commonly used integrated circuit on mobile phones and smartwatches that is linked to a user’s international telephone number. SIM cards can be replaced by programming a new one that corresponds to the same phone number, but usually only if you provide proof of identity to your telephone company. But sometimes a forged ID can unfortunately also provide a solution.
This is reportedly what the Council (aka “@Easymunny”) managed to achieve through collaboration with unnamed co-conspirators. After obtaining a fake ID containing the personal information of the SEC employee who controlled the social media account, the Council allegedly convinced AT&T representatives to give him a new SIM card linked to the company’s number. victim. He then allegedly put the replacement into an iPhone he bought with cash, and quickly gained access to the X account by requesting password retrieval codes for two-factor authentication. From there, he allegedly provided his co-conspirators with the information, which they then used to log into the SEC’s account and tweet the fake Bitcoin ETC approval announcement. The Council is said to have received payment in Bitcoin for his services, after which he returned both the iPhone and the SIM card to the mobile phone store for a refund.
[Related: Montana breeder of illegal, giant sheep hybrid clones gets 6 months in prison.]
As Bitcoin’s value rose following the spoofed tweet, it didn’t take long for the SEC to realize what had happened and regain access to their X account. Meanwhile, if The edge As explained, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler provided an explanation from his own statement. The confirmation of the hack ultimately had the opposite effect on the cryptocurrency, dropping it almost immediately around $2,000 during the subsequent market correction.
But if Gizmodo As noted Friday, the SEC’s problems didn’t end there. On January 10, the day after the hack, the Commission actually decided to grant its final (actual) approval for 11 Bitcoin ETFs, only to accidentally botch the announcement by posting and then deleting the paperwork online. Given the timing, many people were initially unsure whether this had actually been the case another hack.
Council is currently charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud. No word yet on whether he found the information he was looking for during another Internet search cited in the FBI indictment: “Federal Identity Theft Statute.”