US SEC's X Account Hacked
Spreading Fake News of 'Approval'
The price of Bitcoin, the leading virtual asset, showed high volatility due to fake news about the approval of a Bitcoin spot Exchange-Traded Fund (ETF). The price, which had surged to 63 million KRW, plummeted immediately after the news was revealed to be fake, dropping to the low 60 million KRW range.
According to CoinMarketCap on the 10th, around 7:30 AM, the price of Bitcoin was recorded at 60.33 million KRW. This is a 2.51% increase compared to the previous day and a 4.12% rise compared to a week ago.
On the same day, around 6 AM Korean time, the price of Bitcoin rose to a high of 63.27 million KRW but then fell to 59.99 million KRW. The 60 million KRW level was breached during the trading session.
There were reports on the 9th (local time) that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had approved a spot ETF for the cryptocurrency Bitcoin, but this was revealed to be fake news caused by hacking. Initially, the market had predicted that the listing approval would be granted on the 10th (local time).
Reuters and Sputnik News cited the SEC’s social media X (formerly Twitter) account and reported urgently that the SEC had approved the Bitcoin ETF.
However, shortly after the report, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler stated that the SEC’s X account had been hacked and that the SEC had not approved a Bitcoin spot ETF. The SEC’s official account also posted a message saying, "An unauthorized post was made. The SEC has not authorized the approval of a spot ETF."
Investors are angry, demanding that the government take responsibility for investment losses caused by the hacking. On the SEC’s official X account that day, comments included, "The government imposes fines equivalent to $100 million when other investment banks make mistakes that disrupt the market, so how will you make up for this?" and "Clarify to the public whether the account was actually hacked by someone or if it was a draft prematurely disclosed by someone with access to the account."
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