đ¨ Even the official account of the Irish police was used in a crypto scam. The lesson: a blue checkmark proves nothing.
đ The facts (BBC / RTĂ / Irish Independent / TheJournal, Oct. 14â15, 2026)
⢠On Wednesday evening at around 11 p.m. (Irish time), the X accounts @gardainfo (~300,000 followers) and @gardatraffic (+600,000) belonging to An Garda SĂochĂĄna were hacked
⢠The name, photo, and bio were changed to impersonate Xaman, a wallet linked to $XRP ; @gardainfo was renamed âXummHelpxâ
⢠Hundreds of identical posts tagged users: âyouâre eligible, claim your XRP allocationâ
⢠About 12 hours later, the police confirmed unauthorized access on X only; no police systems or data were affected
⢠Official advice: do not interact with any content posted on these accounts
⢠Xaman reiterated that it does not run airdrops and never has
đ§ How it works
An âairdropâ is a free distribution of tokens. Scammers hijack a verified account with a large following (this has happened before with Microsoft, Hyundai, and Netgear), tag you, and send you to a fake website. There, they ask you to âconnect your walletâ and sign a transaction⌠which actually authorizes them to drain your funds. They donât steal your password: they get you to sign it yourself.
âď¸ The nuance
This isnât a vulnerability in the XRP blockchain or Xaman. The weak link is the hacked social media account and the reflex of thinking, âitâs official, so it must be true.â
đ¤ Nafi, a student in Saint-Louis, keeps 25,000 FCFA in USDT for her enrollment fees. She gets a notification: a âverifiedâ account tags her in a free giveaway. One click, one signature⌠and her balance could be gone in seconds. The same scam works on WhatsApp or Telegram.
â Remember: nobody gives you crypto just because youâve been tagged. Never connect your wallet to a link you received in a notification.
Have you ever been tagged in a fake âairdropâ? Tell us đ
Not financial advice. DYOR.
Sources: BBC, RTĂ, Irish Independent, TheJournal.ie, Extra.ie (Oct. 14â15, 2026).
#Crypto #SĂŠcuritĂŠ #Africa
đ The facts (BBC / RTĂ / Irish Independent / TheJournal, Oct. 14â15, 2026)
⢠On Wednesday evening at around 11 p.m. (Irish time), the X accounts @gardainfo (~300,000 followers) and @gardatraffic (+600,000) belonging to An Garda SĂochĂĄna were hacked
⢠The name, photo, and bio were changed to impersonate Xaman, a wallet linked to $XRP ; @gardainfo was renamed âXummHelpxâ
⢠Hundreds of identical posts tagged users: âyouâre eligible, claim your XRP allocationâ
⢠About 12 hours later, the police confirmed unauthorized access on X only; no police systems or data were affected
⢠Official advice: do not interact with any content posted on these accounts
⢠Xaman reiterated that it does not run airdrops and never has
đ§ How it works
An âairdropâ is a free distribution of tokens. Scammers hijack a verified account with a large following (this has happened before with Microsoft, Hyundai, and Netgear), tag you, and send you to a fake website. There, they ask you to âconnect your walletâ and sign a transaction⌠which actually authorizes them to drain your funds. They donât steal your password: they get you to sign it yourself.
âď¸ The nuance
This isnât a vulnerability in the XRP blockchain or Xaman. The weak link is the hacked social media account and the reflex of thinking, âitâs official, so it must be true.â
đ¤ Nafi, a student in Saint-Louis, keeps 25,000 FCFA in USDT for her enrollment fees. She gets a notification: a âverifiedâ account tags her in a free giveaway. One click, one signature⌠and her balance could be gone in seconds. The same scam works on WhatsApp or Telegram.
â Remember: nobody gives you crypto just because youâve been tagged. Never connect your wallet to a link you received in a notification.
Have you ever been tagged in a fake âairdropâ? Tell us đ
Not financial advice. DYOR.
Sources: BBC, RTĂ, Irish Independent, TheJournal.ie, Extra.ie (Oct. 14â15, 2026).
#Crypto #SĂŠcuritĂŠ #Africa