On July 15, the YouTube account of Ben&Ben, a popular nine-piece pop band from the Philippines, was hacked. The hackers used the account to livestream a fraudulent advertisement promoting XRP, a cryptocurrency. The video falsely featured Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, using deepfake technology to claim that XRP could reach $4, enticing viewers to visit phishing websites.

Quick Response from the Band

Ben&Ben promptly acknowledged the hack on their official Facebook page, informing fans that they were working to recover their account. Despite their efforts, the hackers continued to stream the scam content for a few hours. Eventually, the band managed to regain partial control of their account and stopped the fraudulent livestream.

Filipino boyband SB19, with 3.6 million YouTube followers, also fell victim to a similar hack. Their management quickly restored the account and reported the incident to the authorities. Additionally, musician Rico Blanco’s YouTube account, with over 700,000 followers, was compromised. Although Blanco has not released an official statement, the account has been blocked by YouTube for violating platform guidelines.

Ongoing Deepfake Scams

Scams involving deepfake videos of Ripple’s CEO have been prevalent on YouTube. These videos typically urge XRP holders to send their coins to a specific address with the promise of receiving double the amount in return. Such fraudulent activities were notably reported between November and December 2023, with users flagging the scam to Google.

The recent hacking incidents involving prominent Filipino musicians highlight the growing threat of cybercrime in the digital age. It serves as a reminder for all content creators to enhance their online security measures and for viewers to remain vigilant against potential scams.