In a recent cyber incident, Lucy Powell, the Leader of the House of Commons and a Labour MP, had her verified X account hacked on April 15, leading to the promotion of a fraudulent Solana token known as the “House of Commons Coin” ($HCC).
The malicious post, which has since been removed, painted HCC as a “community-driven digital currency bringing people’s power to the blockchain,” using visuals that featured the official House of Commons crest.
NEW: Leader of the House of Commons, Labour MP Lucy Powell, has been hacked pic.twitter.com/YRRdSKrlZT
— Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) April 15, 2025
The tweets urged Powell’s nearly 70,000 followers to invest in the newly launched Solana-based token.
Representatives for Powell confirmed that her account was quickly secured following the detection of the breach. “Lucy Powell’s personal X account was hacked this morning. Steps were taken quickly to secure the account and remove misleading posts,” a spokesperson reported.
Despite the high-profile nature of the incident, the financial impact of the scam was relatively modest.
Data from DEX Screener indicated that the HCC token saw limited engagement, with just over 700 transactions and a peak market cap of approximately $24,000 before plummeting to around $3,800.
Only 34 trades resulted in actual profits, generating an estimated £225.
A Rising Wave of Crypto Scams via Hacked X Accounts
This breach reflects a broader trend in which cybercriminals increasingly target political figures, utilizing their public profiles to lend legitimacy to fraudulent crypto initiatives.
For instance, Ghana’s former President John Dramani Mahama had his X account hacked last month, with the attackers promoting a fake token named Solanafrica.
SCAM ALERT: The X account of Ghana’s President, @JDMahama, has been compromised and is posting a crypto scam.
Solanafrica claims to be “a project led by Ghana’s president John Mahama to make payments across Africa free using the Solana blockchain.” pic.twitter.com/PZ2cxNYENo
— CediRates (@CediRates) March 16, 2025
In February, Argentine President Javier Milei faced a similar situation when he inadvertently supported a cryptocurrency called LIBRA, which surged by over 3,000% within hours before the post was deleted and he denied involvement.
Argentina President @JMilei defends his social media post on so-called meme coin Libra, insisting who wasn’t trying to persuade anyone to invest. #JavierMilei #Libra https://t.co/0W2vpgBYAD
— Finance Newso.com (@Finance Newso) February 18, 2025
Investigations following the incident indicated potential insider manipulation, with firms like Kelsier Ventures allegedly orchestrating a rigged launch that netted insiders over $110 million through the control of token access and liquidity.
Additionally, Argentine Congressman José Luis Espert also suffered a hack leading to the announcement of a token called “$LIBRA V2,” purportedly designed to enhance the country’s economy.
Le hackearon la cuenta a José Luis, no tenemos acceso a la misma. Ya estamos tratando de solucionar el problema . Por favor los que puedan hagan RT para avisar. Muchas gracias https://t.co/w3c2nujaoX
— Jimena (@jimeargentina) March 20, 2025
His team attributed the breach to a coordinated attack aimed at undermining Milei’s administration.
The problem extends beyond Europe and Latin America; former Vice President Leni Robredo’s account in the Philippines was also compromised, with hackers promoting a Solana-based scam token.
Former vice president Leni Robredo’s account on X was hacked on Feb. 17. “My X (Twitter) account was hacked. Please ignore all posts while I am trying to gain control of the account again,” Robredo said on Facebook.
READ: https://t.co/ZdPTRlx0WL pic.twitter.com/Snt9eJqHF2
— PhilSTAR L!fe (@philstarlife) February 17, 2025
She promptly alerted her followers to disregard the misleading posts as she worked to regain access to her account.
A Resurgence of Threats to Media and Political Figures
Powell is the latest prominent figure to fall victim to an increasing trend of attacks by crypto scammers targeting influential individuals.
In the UK media, BBC journalist Nick Robinson also experienced a similar breach earlier this year after inadvertently clicking on a phishing email, resulting in a false announcement about launching a cryptocurrency named $Today for BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Another instance involved Watcher.Guru, whose X account was hacked on March 21, disseminating false information about a partnership between Ripple and SWIFT that briefly affected XRP sentiment.
Our X account was hacked today. We sent a message to an X employee two weeks ago after we suspected an attempt was made to compromise our account.
Here is what we know:
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) March 21, 2025
The misleading post was shared across Watcher.Guru’s other platforms via an automated content bot, despite the use of two-factor authentication.
The team suspects that the breach might be linked to a suspicious link circulated in their Telegram group.
Social engineering remains a prevalent method for initiating breaches. Cybercriminals often rely on phishing emails that direct users to cloned login portals or use malware to extract login credentials.
Once attackers gain access to an account, they exploit the account owner’s credibility to promote flashy graphics and profit promises, targeting unsuspecting investors.
While the HCC scam fizzled out quickly, it serves as another reminder for users and organizations to exercise caution when engaging with influencer-promoted tokens.
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