Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Hackers Keep Robbing Cryptocurrency YouTubers (theverge.com)

Posted by msmash on from the stranger-than-fiction dept.

Hackers are going after YouTubers who make videos about cryptocurrencies. Adrianne Jeffries, reporting for The Verge: Cryptocurrency vlogging has exploded on YouTube over the last two years. In the last 90 days, there were 122,000 videos on cryptocurrency or Bitcoin uploaded to YouTube, garnering 328 million views, according to video analytics platform Tubular Labs. As it turns out, YouTubers are juicy targets for hackers because they share so much information about themselves. They often share their screens as they make trades, which can reveal what apps, usernames, and cryptocurrency addresses they use. They may even tell their followers what systems they use to secure their holdings, which can end up being a blueprint for attackers.

"You have to be very careful about that stuff as a YouTuber," says Peter Saddington, the host of Decentralized TV on YouTube who infamously bought a Lamborghini with his Bitcoin earnings. "In my early days of YouTube, I used to show my trades. I learned that was not a good idea." Saddington was hacked in late 2017.

42 comments

  1. The perfect crime? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Sure, they got "hacked". This is the new excuse isn't it, especially when you don't want to pay taxes on $2M. I agree you shouldn't share too much info on youtube and that may be it, but given the greed of people, I wouldn't be too surprised if they got a bright idea on how to evade taxes.

    1. Re: The perfect crime? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Money can be followed throughout the blockchain. Good luck cashing it out without getting caught.

    2. Re:The perfect crime? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I for one welcome our new I.T. closet cleaner overlords.

  2. Crypto Idiots by charliemerritt03 · · Score: 1

    Gimme a break! What does it take?
    Pump&Dump.com Trustme.org? grrrrrr I guess we should protect the unwashed - bu bu but really

    1. Re:Crypto Idiots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you said absolutely nothing

    2. Re:Crypto Idiots by rmdingler · · Score: 1

      you said absolutely nothing

      Yes, meanwhile, you were quite not literally poignant in your succinct critique... if only the grandparent could emulate your transcendency.

      --
      Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.

      Ernest Hemingway

    3. Re:Crypto Idiots by arkane1234 · · Score: 1

      *flips through thesaurus* oh yeah well.. well....

      --
      -- This space for lease, low setup fee, inquire within!
  3. Shocked by rudy_wayne · · Score: 1, Funny

    What???

    Being an attention whore is a bad idea??

    I am shocked. SHOCKED!!!!!

    1. Re:Shocked by rtb61 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It really is when you buy a Lamborghini with bitcoin revenue probably without declaring it and paying taxes on it, expect the IRS hackers to come a knocking. Perhaps the IRS should be watching more Youtube and checking how many of those YouTube crypto currency experts have declared crypto coin profits in the last 7 bunch of years. I'll bet the majority have not, so not the smartest idea to publicly advertise revenues and every provide video of yourself to make identification so much easier for IRS agents. Especially now, when it looks like the great crypto exchange seize and mine servers fishing expedition for criminal prosecution seems to be in the works. Those people will hack you hard, not to worry, they wont leave you out on the streets, they will provide you with free room and board, even throw in food and clothing, the 'Grey Bar Hotel' I believe it is called. Have not declared you income for years, now would be the time to stop advertising it.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    2. Re:Shocked by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Perhaps not everyone in the entire world is a U.S. Citizen, ever considered that?

    3. Re:Shocked by arkane1234 · · Score: 1

      Everyone is, they just don't realize it yet.

      --
      -- This space for lease, low setup fee, inquire within!
  4. Post and you shall receive by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Looks good on 'em. 0 sympathy or fucks given for "vloggers" or krypto kurrency.

  5. "Bought Lamborghini" by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

    Those guys are like rappers. They didn't "buy" anything. They rent the car for their videos.

    1. Re:"Bought Lamborghini" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Those guys are like rappers. They didn't "buy" anything. They rent the car for their videos.

      The MTV Cribs episode with Red Man was hilarious because he refused to rent a mansion for the episode. He talked about it in an interview years later and said he still owns that duplex.

    2. Re:"Bought Lamborghini" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You can bury your head in the sand if you want but many early investors made a lot of money and many of them bought Lamborghinis.

      https://www.businessinsider.com.au/bitcoin-millionaires-are-buying-lamborghinis-2018-3?r=US&IR=T

    3. Re:"Bought Lamborghini" by 110010001000 · · Score: 1

      Uh huh. I trust business magazines the most.

    4. Re: "Bought Lamborghini" by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

      I used to work out with a guy who was a neighbor of lil John. He said every other week he would have a new car in his driveway because he just rotated through short leases.

      --
      The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
    5. Re:"Bought Lamborghini" by o_ferguson · · Score: 1

      Being first into a pyramid scam doesn't make you an "early investor."

      --
      - In Soviet Korea, only old people loose all their bases to Natalie Portman's petrified hot grits overlords.
    6. Re: "Bought Lamborghini" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That way his car doesn't have that permanent weed stank.

      It's like a form of traffic stop insurance. Car always smells brand new.

    7. Re:"Bought Lamborghini" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      BusinessInsider LOL

  6. Sssshhhh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is not a bad thing.

  7. xkcd had it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    https://xkcd.com/1977/
    Posting your private info to the internet - brilliant

  8. Nobody was robbed by known_coward_69 · · Score: 1

    the bits are still there

  9. There's A Phrase For This by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Something about a fool and their money...

    And for still in cryptos, we know they already are

  10. there's haxx0rs in dem dere intarwebz! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And msmash is still hurting he's not cool enough.

  11. Just the beginning. by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 2

    I think what we'll be seeing in the future is viruses that are completely benign and spread far and wide without doing anything suspicious... until you run a cryptocurrency application of some sort and then it will phone home a copy of the keys. It'll be embedded in documents and application installers, spreading like stuxnet but then you'll suddenly find that POOF! All your money has been transferred elsewhere.

    --
    Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
    1. Re: Just the beginning. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well that kinda is what happened with CC numbers when everyone starting shopping online. Then bank info...

      I long for the days of goofy, in your face computer viruses, but they are long gone. You act like they were just yesterday LOL.

    2. Re: Just the beginning. by The+Conductor · · Score: 1

      Some E-Gold users got their accounts vacuumed out multiple times over the course of a few days, leading them to blame insiders at E-Gold. Nope, it was keyloggers and the swiss-cheesy security of WinXP. It got so bad that E-Gold rejiggered their site to make it impossible the enter your password with a keyboard; you had to use a mouse-click keyboard.

    3. Re: Just the beginning. by pnutjam · · Score: 1

      I would imagine e-gold users and uneducated users have extensive overlap.

      --
      Cheap storage VM.
  12. Of course, there's another reason by 93+Escort+Wagon · · Score: 2

    "YouTubers are juicy targets for hackers because they share so much information about themselves."

    Well, another reason is because many of these YouTube vloggers are not as tech-savvy as they think they are.

    --
    #DeleteChrome
    1. Re:Of course, there's another reason by MerlinTheWizard · · Score: 1

      That's right. And anyway, if they vlog that much it's also because they make much more money off youtubing than they do with cryptocurrencies. Especially those constantly trying to analyze trends and show graphs. Those clearly target people interested in trading (read: make quick money), and clearly don't make any money off of trading. That they are robbed is only fair, and also a bit funny.

  13. Remy too by Rockoon · · Score: 1

    Bitcoin Billionaire
    Keeping your bling in a digital wallet - brilliant.

    --
    "His name was James Damore."
  14. Best way to evade taxes by elcor · · Score: 1

    Is to "lose" all your money

  15. Online cryptocurrency traders .. by najajomo · · Score: 1

    Online cryptocurrency traders .. a sucker born every minute

  16. All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi Scams! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Are (any) fiat-currency and (any) cryptocurrency really equivalent, as cryptocurrency fans claim?
    For example, US Dollar and Bitcoin are really equals?
    Value/validity/authorization of US dollar is provided/guaranteed by US Government (and in-turn whole US Public)!
    Also, not to mention, US Dollars in any US Bank is insured by US Government!
    What authorization/guarantee/insurance is behind Bitcoin? Nothing!
    Sorry but that is the end of discussion then!

    Why do you think Satoshi Nakamoto is really hiding his identity, if Bitcoin is really such a great innovation?
    He is just someone does not like media/fan attention?
    Or, could it be really because Bitcoin (and all cryptocurrencies followed it) are actually Ponzi Schemes?
    (So he knew very well that law enforcement would come after him sooner or later?!)

    If so-called cryptocurrencies are really good innovation, why they attract so many criminals/criminal activity?
    Could it really be because, all cryptocurrencies themselves are scams, and that is why they attract all kinds of criminals/criminal activity?

    If so-called cryptocurrencies are really currency, why no company/store can use Bitcoin as currency anymore?
    Because the price of Bitcoin proved to be extremely unstable to use as a currency?
    Would the result be different, if Bitcoin replaced by any other "cryptocurrency"?
    Aren't all work the same way?

    If so-called cryptocurrencies are really money; isn't people issuing their own money, illegal already, in all countries?
    If so then, why they are still not banned in all countries?

    Or, they are not actually virtual currency but virtual investment?
    But, if they are actually investment, why we need/want them?
    What would happen to world economy, if people invested in virtual investments, instead of real investments?

    Or, all so-called cryptocurrencies are actually just a modified (made decentralized and paying variable interest) Ponzi Schemes?
    (Price of cryptocurrencies would keep increasing in the long term (by their design), so it is equivalent of paying variable interest to all long term investors.)

    As more and more people invest in cryptocurrencies, it will become harder and harder to ban their trading everywhere!
    All cryptocurrencies need to be banned globally before it is too late!

    (Sorry that the choice for me was, either, do lots of copy-paste, or, just sit and watch total global economic collapse to happen sooner or later! :-)

    1. Re:All cryptocurrencies are Ponzi Scams! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      (Sorry that the choice for me was, either, do lots of copy-paste, or, just sit and watch total global economic collapse to happen sooner or later! :-)

      We're so glad that you decided to get up and actually do something about it.

  17. A fool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A fool and his [fake] money are soon parted.

  18. LOL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    About as stupid as having your wallet wide open with cards in plain view and sheets of username/passwords on the wall, as your video recording how to go through a level of Doom.

  19. Best protection vs. cryptominers & more by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    See subject & ÃPK Hosts File Engine 10++ SR-1 32/64-bit https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=ZYrPWpW_H-ykggel7JLwBg&btnG=Search&q=APK+site%3Astart64.com/

    Ads/script/malware rob speed/security/privacy/bandwidth.

    Hosts add speed (via hardcodes/adblocks), security (vs. bad sites/malware/poisoned dns), reliability (vs. dns down), & anonymity (vs. dns requestlogs/trackers).

    Less power/cpu/ram + IO use vs. DNS/routers/addons/antivir + less security bugs/complexity & faster vs. av/addons/routers/remote dns!

    Avoids DNSChangers in routers/IP settings & dns redirect (99++% of ISP DNS != patched vs. it) + DNS tracking & lighten DNS load & resolve faster via local RAM!

    * Viâ what u NATIVELY have in a FASTER kernelmode IP stack (does more w/ less).

    APK

    P.S. - Accept NO substitute for more speed, security, reliablity & anonymity that natively does more for less vs. ANY other single "so-called 'solution'"... apk