Celebrity Instagram accounts hacked in $49K crypto scam
Hackers broke into Instagram accounts of Adele, Future, Tyla and Michael Jackson to promote fake FREEBANDZ cryptocurrency. Scammers stole $49,000 before token crashed 98%.
Hackers broke into Instagram accounts owned by English singer Adele, American rapper Future, South African artist Tyla, and the late Michael Jackson last week. The attackers used these accounts to promote a fake cryptocurrency called "FREEBANDZ."
The intruders posted an AI-created image showing Future holding a large coin with the FREEBANDZ name on it. The posts also included a contract address for people to buy the fake token. All the posts were removed shortly after they appeared online.
Future's Instagram account was turned off completely after the hack. The other celebrity accounts are now set to private. None of the celebrities have made public comments about what happened.
The FREEBANDZ token's value jumped to nearly $900,000 in total market value before crashing by 98% within minutes. The collapse happened when someone sold about 70% of all available tokens in a single transaction.The person behind the scam walked away with more than 250 SOL tokens, worth roughly $49,000. SOL is the main currency used on the Solana blockchain network.
Pattern of similar attacks
This hack follows other recent cases where criminals targeted well-known social media accounts. Earlier incidents involved the UFC's Instagram account and McDonald's social media pages. In each case, hackers promoted fake cryptocurrencies that quickly lost value after initial spikes.
Cybersecurity experts point to weak points in Instagram's security system as the likely reason these widespread attacks succeeded. These attacks are part of a larger trend where criminals use famous people's social media accounts to make fake cryptocurrency projects seem legitimate. In July 2025, blockchain security company PeckShield found that thieves stole $142 million across 17 major incidents. This represented a 27.2% increase from the month before.
Neither the affected celebrities nor Instagram have released official statements about the hack.
