Alabama Man Arrested in SEC Bitcoin Hack Scandal

An Alabama man, Eric Council Jr., was arrested for hacking the U.S. SEC's X account, falsely boosting bitcoin's value. Prosecutors revealed that in January, false news was posted about the SEC approving bitcoin-related ETFs, misleading the market. The SEC was a victim of 'SIM swapping.'

An Alabama man was taken into custody over charges related to hacking the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's X account, which led to a spike in bitcoin's value, according to federal prosecutors. The hack occurred in January when misleading information was posted, suggesting the SEC had approved exchange-traded funds for bitcoin, causing a significant market upheaval. The SEC was quick to delete the misleading post soon after it surfaced.

Eric Council Jr., a 25-year-old from Athens, Alabama, was arrested on Thursday morning, authorities confirmed. The arrest was announced by the U.S. Attorney's office for the District of Columbia. The SEC has yet to comment on the arrest.

The breach was reportedly executed using a method known as 'SIM swapping,' a technique where fraudsters take control of telephone lines to access accounts. This method was allegedly used to compromise the SEC's social media account earlier this year when it was known as Twitter.

(With inputs from agencies.)