A German man lost 10 Bitcoin to so-called giveaway scammers on Twitter and experts say scams are rising. But slowly the timer on the website ran down to zero, and Sebastian said: "I realised then that it was a big fake. In a stock market filing, Tesla said it "updated its investment policy" in January and now wanted to invest in "reserve assets" such as digital currencies, gold bullion or gold exchange-traded funds. Elon Musk says Twitter briefly blocked him because the tech firm suspected his account had been hacked. It said it had already bought $1.5bn of Bitcoin and could "acquire and hold digital assets" in the future. You can now buy a Tesla with Bitcoin All the latest news about Elon Musk from the BBC. All the latest news about Elon Musk from the BBC. His resignation ends his family's six-decade hold on power in Cuba. ★★★★☆, The mind-blowing wealth of the richest person to ever live, Why IS involvement in Mozambique is exaggerated, 'I cried because it wasn’t me' Video'I cried because it wasn’t me'. A man in Germany was tricked into sending 10 bitcoins — worth more than $500,000 — believing that Elon Musk would double his money, the BBC reported. Le mois dernier, un investisseur allemand de bitcoin a perdu 10 BTC d’une valeur d’environ 407000£ (552490 $) au moment de la rédaction de cet article. Sebastian wants international authorities to take action against the scammers and would like to see the owners of Bitcoin exchanges be proactive in helping. The victim narrated to the BBC how he fell for the Bitcoin fraud, known as a “gift scam.” It is among the largest 'giveaway scams' ever reported. However, for one German man, his name will always bring up one of his worst memories. BBC Mundo The competition was apparently being run by Elon Musk's Tesla team. "It also does sound quite plausible that someone like Elon Musk, a big supporter of cryptocurrency, would give away Bitcoin. The BBC reported this week that a German man from Cologne, Sebastian, lost 10 bitcoins to an Elon Musk bitcoin giveaway scam. They have identified which Bitcoin addresses or wallets are operated by so-called "giveaway scammers" and have tracked the increasing amount of money they are making. Whale Alert founder Frank van Weert says it's hard to say why the scams are not only prevailing, but also becoming more successful. "It is too easy to steal Bitcoin. by admin. All the exchange platform websites should know who their customers are and know if a particular wallet address is being used by thieves.". Medium. They wait for the real accounts to tweet, and post a reply to make it look like the celebrities have posted the scams to their millions of followers. VIEWS. In October, Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey cautioned over Bitcoin's use as a payment method. Sebastian will always remember the moment he lost £407,000, with equal parts anger and shame. Bitcoin Bitcoin: Fake Elon Musk giveaway scam ‘cost man £400,000 ... Sebastian, who asked that the BBC didn’t use his real name, didn’t sleep that night. "The people falling for the scams are not uneducated. He opted to deliver his complete keeping of 10 bitcoin for the offer, the BBC reported. Under a scheme that’s been dubbed the “giveaway scam,” social media accounts pretending to represent famous individuals promise that anyone who sends cryptocurrency to a specified wallet will receive double the amount back. I live together with my wife and two children and we have a nice house with a garden. What happens to your body in extreme heat? Read about our approach to external linking. Read about our approach to external linking. The world's biggest money manager, Blackrock, recently changed a handful of investment mandates to allow some of its funds to invest in the currency. India Kumbh festival goes ahead amid Covid surge, Does Nomadland live up to its Oscar-tipped hype? A refugee organisation says the White House's explanation of the order is "completely false". A man in Germany was tricked into sending 10 bitcoins - worth more than $500,000 - believing that Elon Musk would double his money, the BBC reported. Bitcoin, which has hit record highs in recent months after a rollercoaster ride over the past decade, has also drawn support from major financial institutions this year. I thought I'd just thrown away the gamechanger for my family, my early retirement fund and all the upcoming holidays with my kids. ★★★★☆, The mind-blowing wealth of the richest person to ever live, Why IS involvement in Mozambique is exaggerated, 'I cried because it wasn’t me' Video'I cried because it wasn’t me', Canada sounds the alarm as Covid cases overtake US1, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory dies aged 522, Raúl Castro steps down as Cuban communist leader3, Student's heart failure linked to energy drinks4, Indianapolis FedEx gunman was former employee5, Biden backtracks on keeping Trump cap on refugees6, Nasa chooses SpaceX to build Moon lander7, How Russia's Sputnik vaccine is dividing Europe8, Chicago releases video of police shooting boy, 139, Queen shares cherished Prince Philip photo10. However, central banks remain sceptical of digital currencies. The 42-year-old says he first invested $40,000 in Bitcoin in 2017, and quickly made his money back as the value of the coins rose on the open market. EXCLUSIVE BBC INTERVIEW WITH ELON MUSK “You may have heard about this new cryptocurrency investment platform called Bitcoin Evolution that’s helping regular people in Australia, Asia and North America build fortunes overnight. "'Take the maximum', I thought, this is definitely real, so I sent 10 Bitcoin.". In that instance hackers stole more than $118,000 worth of Bitcoin and three people were arrested. Bitcoin has hit record highs for a second day after Elon Musk's car company Tesla said it had bought about $1.5bn (£1.1bn) of the cryptocurrency. 20 years in Afghanistan: Was it worth it? This is after he lost over $564,000 to a scam promoted on … Bitcoin: Elon Musk loses world's richest title as Tesla falters. © 2021 BBC. © 2021 BBC. Sebastian's 10 Bitcoin was the most they'd ever recorded being lost in one transaction. Canada sounds the alarm as Covid cases overtake US, Indianapolis FedEx gunman was former employee, Fyre Festival ticket-holders win $2m settlement, Philip's funeral to mark his 'unwavering loyalty'. The blockchain analysis company has tried to get authorities to take action against the scams for months, but says nothing is being done. From his house in Cologne in Germany he sat there refreshing his screen every 30 seconds. Read about our approach to external linking. 0. Twitter is a popular platform, but giveaway scams can also be found on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram. "Perdí más de medio millón de dólares por culpa de una cuenta falsa de Elon Musk" Un alemán ha perdido 10 bitcoin por culpa de una estafa que simula regalar criptodivisas. Kim Kardashian West, Elon Musk, Bill Gates and Barack Obama were all targeted in the high-profile Twitter accounts in a large-scale Bitcoin scam. Then he received a Twitter notification with news from Elon Musk. Biden backtracks on keeping Trump cap on refugees. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. A person in Germany described dropping bitcoins value half 1,000,000 {dollars} in a rip-off. It invited people to send anything from 0.1 Bitcoin (worth approximately £4,300) to 20 Bitcoin (approximately £860,000), and the team would send back double the amount. He cashed out and got his initial money back, but then watched excitedly over the years as the 10 coins grew to be worth nearly 500,000 euros. Sebastian double-checked the verification logo next to Elon Musk's name, and then tried to decide whether to send five or 10 Bitcoin. Elon Musk's car firm Tesla has said it bought about $1.5bn (£1.1bn) of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin in January and expects to start accepting it as payment in future. I woke her up and told her that I'd made a big mistake, a really big mistake.". Researchers says scammers are making record-breaking sums in 2021. He removed it days later, but has continued talking up Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, including Dogecoin, which jumped 50% after his endorsement. Sebastian, l’un de ses followers, se souviendra en tout cas toujours du moment où il a perdu près de 470 000 euros en Bitcoins et en croyant à un faux tweet du P.-D. G. de SpaceX. Published 15 minutes ago. It comes days after Mr Musk added "#bitcoin" to his Twitter profile page, which drove up the price. Indianapolis FedEx gunman was former employee, Biden backtracks on keeping Trump cap on refugees, How Russia's Sputnik vaccine is dividing Europe, Six features of the duke's funeral explained. It invited people to send anything from 0.1 Bitcoin (worth approximately £4,300) to 20 Bitcoin (approximately £860,000), and the team would send back double the amount. Sebastian told the BBC: "Musk tweeted, 'Dojo 4 Doge?' However, he eventually began to accept the money was gone forever. Sebastian followed the link to a professional-looking website where the Bitcoin giveaway looked to be in full swing. Raúl Castro steps down as Cuban communist leader, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory dies aged 52, How Russia's Sputnik vaccine is dividing Europe, Six features of the duke's funeral explained. I was greedy that night and it made me blind.". The night leading up to it had been otherwise forgettable. The BBC has reported on a German man who was duped into sending $560,000 worth of bitcoin to a Twitter user posing as Elon Musk. He saw Mr Musk send a fresh cryptic tweet and felt reassured that the giveaway was real. "We don't have any data to explain it, but it could be related to the wider Bitcoin market. Scammers have reportedly pulled in millions of dollars in bitcoin from people wanting to … They create Twitter accounts that look like those of celebrities such as Elon Musk or billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya. and I wondered what it meant. The news caused the price of Bitcoin to jump 17% to $44,220, a record high. A screenshot of a now-deleted page professing to be offering away bitcoin from Elon Musk. There was a timer counting down, and the website promised participants that they could double their money. We've received emails from people who have lost Bitcoin and they are very articulate.". The competition was apparently being run by Elon Musk’s Tesla team. 133 miles away in Amsterdam, analysts at Whale Alert had watched in horror as Sebastian's 10 Bitcoin were transferred and then cashed out anonymously a few days later. "I think we will see an acceleration of companies looking to allocate to Bitcoin now that Tesla has made the first move," said Eric Turner, vice-president of market intelligence at cryptocurrency research firm Messari. Sebastian, who asked that the BBC didn't use his real name, didn't sleep that night. "I threw my head on to the sofa cushions and my heart was beating so hard. Un alemán ha perdido 10 bitcoin por culpa de una estafa ... "Perdí más de medio millón de dólares por culpa de una cuenta falsa de Elon Musk" Joe Tidy; Cyber ... le cuenta Sebastian a la BBC. "Tesla is now starting to take on big [foreign exchange] risk - this may not worry a lot of investors, but some conservative types might be concerned," he said. 1.5k. 42 yaşındaki bir Alman, sahte Elon Musk hesabından gelen bir mesaja cevap verip, ikiye katlayacağı umuduyla 10 Bitcoin gönderdi. Elon Musk's car firm Tesla has said it bought about $1.5bn (£1.1bn) of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin in January and expects to start accepting it as payment in future. But Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, warned that Bitcoin was a "very volatile" cryptocurrency. Instead, he spent hours emailing the scammer website and tweeting the fake Elon Musk' Twitter account to try to get some or all of his money back. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Mr Bailey added that he was "very nervous" about people using Bitcoin for payments, pointing out that investors should realise its price was extremely volatile. Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory dies aged 521, Raúl Castro steps down as Cuban communist leader2, Biden backtracks on keeping Trump cap on refugees3, Canada sounds the alarm as Covid cases overtake US4, Nasa chooses SpaceX to build Moon lander5, Indianapolis FedEx gunman was former employee6, How Russia's Sputnik vaccine is dividing Europe7, Fyre Festival ticket-holders win $2m settlement8, Philip's funeral to mark his 'unwavering loyalty'9, Six features of the duke's funeral explained10. 'Elon Musk' bitcoin giveaways continue to scam people on Youtube. He advised the BBC that he fell for a Twitter account posing as Elon Musk providing to double his cash. Data also suggests the number of victims this year is set to eclipse previous years. The entrepreneur says Twitter believed his account had been hacked. 16 March 2021. in Bitcoin Price, More Bitcoin. Read about our approach to external linking. When the Bitcoin price goes up, people go crazy and a lot of them are new to the market and they want this idea of quick money," said Mr van Weert. SharecloseShare pageCopy linkAbout sharing. "Moreover, we expect to begin accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment for our products in the near future, subject to applicable laws and initially on a limited basis," it said. Elon Musk has announced that Tesla cars can now be purchased using Bitcoin ().The electric car company’s CEO and “Technoking” said the firm would operate Bitcoin nodes directly, and would hold on to the Bitcoin it accumulates without converting it to fiat. Dogecoin takes off after tip by Elon Musk, Bitcoin tops $34,000 as record rally continues, Raúl Castro steps down as Cuban communist leader. The most high-profile giveaway scam happened in July 2020, when a large-scale but shortlived Twitter hack allowed scammers to tweet using celebrity accounts like Bill Gates, Kim Kardashian-West and Elon Musk. Giveaway gangs have already made more than $18m (£13m) in the first three months of this year, compared with the $16m made in total for the whole of 2020. Canada sounds the alarm as Covid cases overtake US, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory dies aged 52, Student's heart failure linked to energy drinks, Chicago releases video of police shooting boy, 13, Queen shares cherished Prince Philip photo. He and his wife watched a series on Netflix, before she went to bed and left him on the sofa messing about on his phone. You may be skeptical because it sounds too good to be true.” Musk … Mr Musk said a week ago in a tweet that Bitcoin was "on the verge" of being more widely accepted among investors. As an alternative, he spent hours emailing the scammer web site and tweeting the faux Elon Musk’ Twitter account to attempt to get some or all of his a reimbursement.