FBI wants to know who posted the fake bitcoin ETF announcement

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) says it has launched an investigation into Tuesday’s fake post approving bitcoin ETFs, together with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and other law enforcement agencies.

A post made from the SEC’s official X (formerly Twitter) account claimed it had approved spot bitcoin ETFs — a much anticipated adoption which sent bitcoin’s price momentarily rocketing. Minutes later, however, the SEC said the post was fake and that its account had been “compromised,” which brought the price back down.

An investigation by X found that an “unidentified individual” had gained control of the SEC account’s associated phone number. The SEC now claims that the post’s text and image weren’t created or drafted by its staff.

The event caused controversy on X, with several crypto proponents accusing the SEC of faking a hack to postpone a decision on bitcoin ETFs.

The @SECGov X account was compromised, and an unauthorized post was posted. The SEC has not approved the listing and trading of spot bitcoin exchange-traded products.
— U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (@SECGov) January 9, 2024

The SEC’s tweet minutes after the hacked post was deleted.

Now, the SEC appears intent on identifying the person(s) responsible. An SEC spokesperson announced on Wednesday the coordinated investigation with the FBI and more, via an emailed statement to publishers.

The spokesperson claimed that the agency would share any appropriate investigation updates and that actions would appear on the Federal Register and its website.

The SEC historically approved 11 bitcoin ETFs the day after the fake post was made.

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