AI-Generated Deepfake Elon Musk Promotes Crypto Scam on YouTube Live

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Sujha Sundararajan

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Sujha Sundararajan

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Sujha has been recognised as 🟣 Women In Crypto 2024 🟣 by BeInCrypto for her leadership in crypto journalism.

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June 23, 2024

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An AI-generated deepfake video of Elon Musk livestreamed on YouTube, pushing fake crypto giveaway and directing viewers to a shady website.

The video, which was taken down later, streamed for five hours on Sunday, replicating a clip from a Tesla event.

Per a report from Engadget, the video had Elon Musk’s AI-generated voice, suggesting viewers to visit a website. He instructed crypto investors to deposit Bitcoin, Ethereum and Dogecoin to participate in a giveaway.

The video promised that the website would “automatically send back double the amount of the cryptocurrency you deposited.”

At one point, the video had more than 30,000 viewers, which brought it to the top of YouTube’s Live Now recommendations.

Crypto community warned users on X, to be wary of the crypto YouTube scam. One user wrote that the convincing scam is a result of “the current advancements in artificial intelligence and deepfake technology.”

“Deepfakes, which are AI-generated videos that can seamlessly replace one person’s likeness with another, have demonstrated how easily visual and audio media can be manipulated.”

Bostrom's theory may come true
Given the current advancements in artificial intelligence and deepfake technology, we are already witnessing instances where fake content can convincingly mimic real events and people. Deepfakes, which are AI-generated videos that can seamlessly…

— Ri33it (@frogz1lla) June 24, 2024

Another user urged the YouTube Team to take action on this ‘serious crime.’ “This was fake/deepfake with the intention to scam people out of their crypto currency,” the user wrote.

the livestream had Elon Musk apparently saying "scan the on screen QR code, deposit any amount of crypto currency, and you will receive double the amount back". This was fake/deepfake with the intention to scam people out of their crypto currency. This is serious crime. Ban them

— jco83 (@jasonoddy) June 24, 2024

Last month, a cybersecurity report revealed that more than 35 YouTube channels live-streamed a deepfake video of Elon Musk. The videos promoted high-returns crypto scam, targeting space enthusiasts eager to watch the SpaceX starship rocket launch.

Celebrity-Targeted Crypto Scams

Crypto scams and fake promotions, targeting Musk’s followers on social media have been a persistent issue over years. For instance, in October 2023, another deepfake of Elon Musk promised 30% returns on deposits. Users were encouraged to invest in the BitVex trading platform.

Crypto scam promotions are not limited to Elon Musk. Rapper 50 Cent’s X account, on Sunday, was hacked to carry out a multimillion-dollar memecoin rug pull. Interestingly, the scammer who hacked, made $3,000,000 in 30 minutes.

“My Twitter & Thisis 50.com was hacked I have no association with this Crypto,” the rapper wrote on Instagram. “Twitter worked quickly to lock my account back down. Whoever did this made $3,000,000 in 30 minutes.”