Lego’s website was temporarily compromised on Friday, October 4 by crypto scammers who attempted to dupe Lego fans into buying a fake “LEGO Coin” cryptocurrency. The website promised “secret rewards” to buyers of the fake coin and redirected them to a website that was taking payments in Ethereum, one of the most popular cryptocurrencies. However, according to Lego fans on Reddit, it was just over an hour before the attackers were stopped, and the website returned to normal. LEGO Coin first appeared on LEGO’s homepage at roughly 8am ET on October 5, before being removed roughly 75 minutes later.Though the Lego brand has expanded into everything from movies to video games and amusement parks over the past decades, it’s unlikely we’ll see a crypto project from them, at least anytime soon. The iconic Danish toy brand has yet to announce anything crypto-related so far. However, the brand published a rather cryptic Tweet back in March 2021, potentially hinting at an entry into the NFT (Non-Fungible Token) space.NFTs are tradable virtual items that are powered by some of the same technology as Bitcoin. The Tweet read “zeros and ones but still a brick” along with the “NFT” hashtag. The Tweet was deleted shortly after, and they the company hasn’t mentioned it since. Even major brands aren’t immune from getting hijacked to promote fake crypto schemes, and Lego is just one of many who have fallen victim. ChatGPT maker OpenAI had one of its official social media channels hijacked earlier this month. The “OpenAI Newsroom” account on X/Twitter suddenly began promoting a fake cryptocurrency called “$OPEANAI”, directing viewers to a malicious link containing a phishing scam.
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The scam was aimed at draining the wallets of crypto buyers interested in the made-up coin. Even some of the US government’s most important regulators have been compromised by crypto scammers attempting to inflate the value of cryptocurrencies. In January, hackers gained access to the Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) official Twitter account, @SECGov.The cybercriminals posted that the SEC had approved Bitcoin ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds), a type of Bitcoin investment fund.The post added billions to the overall value of Bitcoin before it was deleted shortly after.
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About Will McCurdy
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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.
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