The Official Pokémon Account Was Hacked to Pull a Memecoin Scam
Hackers briefly took control of the official Pokémon account on X to promote a fraudulent memecoin, $POKEMON, presenting it as part of the franchise’s 30th-anniversary celebrations. The incident matters because the account has around eight million followers, giving the scam immediate global reach and potential credibility despite Pokémon not being involved in the cryptocurrency.
The takeover lasted about 30 minutes, and more than $3 million in transactions occurred after the token was listed, although its market value fluctuated sharply and was later around $355,000. Pokémon subsequently confirmed in a deleted post that its account had been compromised and said it would investigate; the episode follows similar recent attacks on entertainment accounts used to promote crypto schemes.
- Pokémon’s X account was hacked to promote a fake memecoin.
- The scam reached an account with eight million followers.
- Pokémon confirmed it was not behind the cryptocurrency.
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Pokémon is a global entertainment franchise owned by the Japanese company Nintendo, alongside partners The Pokémon Company and Game Freak. It began with video games and has grown to include animated programmes, films, trading cards and merchandise, with a large international audience.
X is a social media platform where organisations use verified accounts to communicate with followers. Memecoins are cryptocurrencies often promoted through internet culture or popular names; they can be highly volatile, and using a famous brand’s name does not mean the brand supports or issued the coin.
A compromised account can make a false promotion appear genuine to its followers. That can give fraudsters a way to attract attention and trading, while leaving readers to distinguish an account’s authentic messages from posts made by an intruder.