McDonald’s Social Media Hacked
A senior McDonald’s employee experienced a social media breach on Wednesday, leading to the promotion of a short-lived Grimace-themed Solana meme coin scam across the fast food giant’s public accounts.
Phishing Attack on McDonald’s
On Wednesday morning, posts started appearing on McDonald’s Instagram page and the personal Twitter account of Senior Marketing Director Guillaume Huin, endorsing a new GRIMACE token.
- The Solana meme coin was launched on the Pump.fun platform.
- Posts on Huin’s Twitter promised GRIMACE holders follows from McDonald’s.
- The culprits changed McDonald’s Instagram bio to confess their actions and thanked the community for the Solana funds.
Hackers’ Return to McDonald’s Instagram
- After the price surge and collapse of GRIMACE, hackers altered McDonald’s Instagram bio to taunt followers.
- Blockchain data firm Bubblemaps reported the hacker’s strategy of buying and distributing tokens before the scam.
- The hackers linked to a Telegram group but only posted a music video in it.
Unexpected Trading Volume Spike
Despite clear indications of a scam, GRIMACE token recorded over $20 million in trading volume over a short period.
Recovering Control
McDonald’s finally regained control of its Instagram account after an hour, removing all references to the meme coin.
Risks of Involvement
Participating in such scams for quick gains is highly risky, often leading to significant losses.
Corporate Social Media Vulnerabilities
The incident highlights the ease with which hackers can exploit weaknesses in corporate social media accounts.
Hot Take: Crypto Scams and Corporate Social Media
Stay vigilant against scams on social media, as hackers continue to target high-profile accounts to push fraudulent schemes.