The FBI has detained an Alabama man accused of hacking into the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s X (formerly Twitter) account. The man allegedly disseminated false information about Bitcoin, which temporarily increased the cryptocurrency’s price by $1,000.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Eric Council Jr. allegedly acquired identifying information and an ID template from accomplices, allowing him to forge an ID card of someone with access to the SEC’s X account. He purportedly used this ID card at a Huntsville, Alabama, cell phone store to obtain an iPhone with a SIM card connected to the victim’s phone number.
Council is alleged to have assisted his co-conspirators in accessing the SEC’s X account via this spoofed phone, from which they tweeted false information stating, “Today the SEC grants approval for #Bitcoin ETFs for listing on all registered national securities exchanges.” It is claimed that Council was compensated in Bitcoin for his assistance.
Following the attack, Council, 25, reportedly conducted suspicious internet searches including phrases such as “SECGOV hack,” “telegram swap,” “how can I know for sure if I am being investigated by the FBI,” and “What are the signs you are under investigation by law enforcement or the FBI even if you have not been contacted by them,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The alleged hacking incident on January 9 briefly increased Bitcoin’s value before SEC Chairman Gary Gensler clarified the misinformation on his account, causing Bitcoin’s price to decrease by $2,000.
The day after the incident, the SEC officially sanctioned 11 Bitcoin ETFs but created confusion by posting and then removing an approval document from its website, raising concerns about its authenticity.
Eric Council faces charges of conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud, and he was set to be arraigned on Thursday at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves stated, “These SIM swapping schemes, where fraudsters trick service providers into giving them control of unsuspecting victims’ phones, can result in devastating financial losses to victims and leaks of sensitive personal and private information. Here, the conspirators allegedly used their illegal access to a phone to manipulate financial markets. Through indictments like this, we will hold accountable those who commit these serious crimes.”
