Metallica’s X Account Hacked to Promote Solana Meme Coin

Key Takeaways

• Posts from Metallica’s account claimed MoonPay was involved with the token, which MoonPay president Keith Grossman later dismissed
• The posts claimed that users could cash in their METAL tokens to redeem exclusive items, like “free concert tickets,”

The official X(formerly Twitter) account of heavy metal band Metallica was compromised late Tuesday, June 25. The hackers used the account to promote a Solana meme coin, following a pattern of high-profile accounts being exploited for cryptocurrency scams.

The fraudulent tweets began appearing around 8 PM ET and included promotions for a token named METAL, which was falsely claimed to be in collaboration with ticketing giant Ticketmaster and crypto payments platform MoonPay. The posts touted the token as a revolutionary new asset on the Solana blockchain, promising discounts on tickets and merchandise. There was also a Twitter Spaces audio call and replies to other users to boost credibility.

Despite the tweets being deleted within 90 minutes, the METAL token experienced over $10 million in trading volume before its value plummeted. The scam claimed that holders could use METAL for exclusive items such as free concert tickets, custom gaming consoles, and other merchandise. One tweet even mentioned potential staking rewards for the token.

Metallica’s team quickly regained control of the account and removed all mentions of the METAL token. The band’s first tweet about the token on June 26 falsely claimed a partnership with Ticketmaster. In reality, the token was launched on the Solana-based platform pump.fun. Ticketmaster did not issue any statements regarding the partnership.

MoonPay’s president, Keith Grossman, was quick to disavow the scam in an X post, stating, “MoonPay does NOT support METAL.” Following this, MoonPay tweeted a warning about the scam, humorously referencing Metallica’s famous song, “Master of Puppets”: “If someone is offering you a METAL token, they are not the master of puppets — they’re the master of scams!”

Crypto Twitter was quick to identify the tweets as scams, and Grossman’s early intervention helped alert the community. In response to Grossman’s tweet, the scammers claimed, “We have been in touch with your team via email.” However, MoonPay promptly dismissed these claims, reinforcing the message that the METAL token was a scam.

The incident follows a series of similar scams targeting celebrities. Just last week, rapper 50 Cent (Curtis Jackson) and legendary pro wrestler Hulk Hogan were both victims of similar fraudulent schemes.

X Account hacks to promote fake airdrops and scam crypto tokens are becoming increasingly common in the Web3 Space. Earlier this year, MicroStrategy’s X Account was compromised by hackers.

The hacked MicroStrategy account was used to promote a deceptive scheme involving a fake Ethereum-based token airdrop. Victims who fell prey to that phishing link and connected their wallets reported losses exceeding $440,000.