CZ warns of AI deepfakes as more execs fall victim to Lazarus-linked zoom hacks

Malicious actors are targeting crypto executives through a new wave of AI-powered deepfake impersonation attacks, and Binance’s Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has joined the chorus of warnings.

Commenting on the recent reports of a Zoom-based hacking scheme targeting industry figures, the former Binance CEO urged the crypto community to stay vigilant.

Zhao emphasized the growing threat of deepfakes, noting that the rising sophistication of these attacks could soon render video verification unreliable. His remarks came in response to a post from Japanese crypto figure Mai Fujimoto, who shared her personal experience with the same scheme.

Per Fujimoto’s report, attackers posed as one of her acquaintances in what appeared to be a normal Zoom video call. During the 10-minute meeting, the impersonator raised concerns over her audio quality and shared a link to an alleged software update. After she clicked it, the hackers gained unauthorized access to her systems, accessing sensitive data and taking over her official X, Telegram, and Metamask accounts.

“When I opened the Zoom link, her face appeared, so I didn’t suspect anything,” she explained, adding, “If I had known about this kind of attack, I might not have clicked the link. I want everyone to be aware of this and take caution to prevent similar incidents.”

Fujimoto’s experience closely mirrors another incident reported earlier by former Animoca exec Mehdi Farooq, who described being targeted in a nearly identical Zoom scam. In his case, the attackers used deepfakes of two of his acquaintances. Like Fujimoto, Farooq was asked to update his app during the call due to complaints about his audio quality. Minutes after installing the fake update, six of his crypto wallets were drained, resulting in the loss of most of his savings.

Founders from Manta Network, Mon Protocol, Stably, and Devdock AI have also reported similar phishing attempts, raising alarm about what appears to be a coordinated wave of attacks.

Security analysts have tied the scheme to known tactics used by the North Korea-backed hacker group Lazarus, a notorious hacking syndicate that has repeatedly targeted the crypto industry and is responsible for some of the biggest breaches and thefts.

A recent Bitget report revealed that AI-generated deepfake impersonations of government officials, billionaires, and celebrities accounted for 40% of “high-value frauds” in 2024, urging the industry to adopt stricter security measures and remain on high alert.