The official X account of the legendary heavy metal band Metallica was reportedly hacked, with the perpetrators using the account to promote a fraudulent Solana-based token, METAL. This alarming incident has raised questions and concerns within the crypto community.
The first announcement about the METAL token appeared on Metallica’s X account on June 26, claiming the token was launched on the Solana-based platform pump.fun in partnership with Ticketmaster. However, Ticketmaster has made no public statement confirming this partnership and did not respond to inquiries.
Adding to the confusion, the posts from Metallica’s account also implicated fintech firm MoonPay in the promotion of METAL. MoonPay’s president, Keith Grossman, quickly debunked this claim, asserting on X that “MoonPay does NOT support METAL.”
Despite a pinned post on Metallica’s account pointing to the band’s official website, there was no mention of the token there. The hackers’ subsequent posts made grandiose claims, promising that METAL token holders could redeem exclusive items such as “free concert tickets,” custom gaming consoles, and merchandise. One post even suggested staking rewards for the token.
The initial buzz led to a brief surge in the METAL token’s value, peaking at over $3 million within just 20 minutes of its launch, according to Dexscreener data. However, the excitement was short-lived. The value of METAL plummeted by more than 77%, dropping to a market capitalization of $663,000 at the time of writing.
This incident highlights the ongoing risks and vulnerabilities in the digital space, reminding users to remain vigilant and skeptical of unsolicited cryptocurrency promotions, especially when they seem too good to be true.
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