Fake on-chain sleuth ZachXBT accounts surface online

Fake profiles of the popular researcher ZachXBT, known for publicly exposing fraudulent cryptocurrency projects, spread on social media.

? ATTENTION

keep your eyes peeled there are already fake @zachxbt accounts trying to scam people in the form of offering assistance pic.twitter.com/OjiacLZZJ1

— MichaelK.eth (@MichaelKdcl) December 23, 2023

Michael Hekoyan, a senior executive at Wallet Guard, warned that attackers pose as the blogger, offering victims “help”.

This situation followed the real ZachXBT deactivating his X account for an “indefinite period”.

In his Telegram channel, the investigator also warned users against buying GROK meme coins that trade on his name, though he did not reveal the reasons for leaving social media.

In June ZachXBT faced a lawsuit from entrepreneur Jeff Huang, known on X as MachiBigBrother. He accused the sleuth of defamation and causing reputational damage.

The dispute related to a article from 2022, in which the investigator accused Machi Big Brother of allegedly siphoning 22,000 ETH from Formosa Financial, a crypto-asset management company, in 2018.

ZachXBT was supported, including financially, by major players such as former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell, and Polygon co-founder Sandeep Nailwal. In August the sides reached a peaceful settlement of the claims.

In November, GROK meme token holders criticised the work of the on-chain sleuth, as after his investigation the coin’s price collapsed to zero. The asset was created in the likeness of Elon Musk’s eponymous chatbot and is linked to a well-known scam.