While everyone was soaking in the holidays festive during Christmas eve, Kick, the Stake.com-owned streaming platform took the opportunity to promote a Solana-based cryptocurrency on its X account.
According to the deleted X post, Kick was promoting a cryptocurrency named $KICK, which directed users to a suspicious wallet address.
KICK promoted the new cryptocurrency as a groundbreaking solution for the blockchain community and creators.
But as it turns out, this was not the doing of the streaming platform, but hackers who have managed to jail break into the streaming platform's socials to promote the fraudulent cryptocurrency.
Kick Responds Swiftly to Contain the Attack
Because the name of the fraudulent cryptocurrency is called KICK, many unsuspecting victims would naturally assume that this is a legit cryptocurrency from the streaming platform.
So it really came as a surprise when Kick's Co-owner, Bijan Tehrani broke the bad news on his social media account that this new cryptocurrency is nothing but a scam.
He also urged users to report the scam posts to help the company regain control of its account. The official Kick Support page also confirmed that the posts were a hoax.
Co-owner Bijan Tehrani quickly addressed the issue, warning users that the posts were part of a scam and urging them to report the fraudulent content. Following the intervention, Kick regained control of its account, removed the malicious posts, and advised users to avoid interacting with any suspicious messages or links.
Tehrani also clarified that Kick has no affiliation with the promoted cryptocurrency or any NFT project. While Stake.com, which owns Kick, supports crypto transactions by allowing users to purchase and store Bitcoin, Tehrani reiterated that Kick itself has no plans to venture into crypto projects.
The Rising Tide of Crypto Scams
This incident highlights the growing prevalence of crypto scams, especially during the festive season. Cybercriminals have been leveraging the surge in digital transactions to deceive users.
Reports indicate that in November alone, over 9,200 users fell victim to crypto scams, resulting in losses exceeding $9.38 million across various cryptocurrencies. Although lower than the $20.2 million lost in October, these figures underscore the persistent threat to investors.
December has already seen a spike in crypto-related attacks. Recently, cryptocurrency hardware wallet provider Ledger warned of phishing scams targeting its users. Fraudulent emails posed as official communications, claiming a “data breach” and urging users to verify their recovery phrases through a fake “secure verification tool.”
Security experts are urging users to remain cautious during the holiday season, a time when online activities—and scams—reach their peak. Scammers are exploiting increased crypto transactions, online shopping, and festive distractions to target victims.