Scott Melker, the „Wolf of all streets“, has not been able to do anything else on Twitter than read or retweet more than 24 hours after the massive hacking of verified accounts.
In a live interview with Cointelegraph on July 15th, the crypto currency trader said in the middle of the attack that he couldn’t verify his account using a two-factor authentication. Melker then briefly had full access to read, retest and post for about an hour before his account was restricted after the interview.
Twitter support reported that the platform had „blocked the accounts that were compromised“ and would restore access as necessary. At the time of this writing, all major verified accounts, including Joe Biden’s and Binance’s, were back online, but Melker and others are still restricted from posting.
Twitter hackers had access to employee management panels
Dangers of centralization
The recent hacking of Twitter, which resulted in the platform restricting the publication of all verified accounts for hours, highlights the dangers of relying on a single platform. Melker said that anyone who relies on a centralized service runs the risk of having it removed in an instant.
„We cannot depend on centralized platforms, no matter how good their intentions are,“ Melker said in his newsletter. „These are points of failure that cannot be controlled.
The crypto trader said the same circumstances apply to „being your own bank,“ meaning storing private keys in a different safe, rather than keeping all one’s assets in a centralized exchange.
As if the universe wanted its viewpoint to sink, YouTube – a centralized platform, if ever there was one – shut down Cointelegraph’s live broadcast shortly after he spoke, saying the content violated its terms of service.
Whale Alert can no longer tweet due to Twitter’s anti-hacking measures
„The weakest hacking attempt in history“
Hacked Twitter accounts posted messages trying to scam millions of followers into sending Bitcoin (BTC) or cash, promising a 2:1 return. Melker said this was a pretty weak attempt given the serious nature of the breach.
„They could literally have started a world war, and they’re trying an old scam that has probably failed every time it’s been tried in history,“ he said.
What’s happening to Bitcoin
The crypto trader sees the hacking as a „Twitter problem“ rather than a „Bitcoin problem“, saying that the market would have already seen a „super knee-jerk reaction“ to the BTC price fairly quickly. Bitcoin fell 1.4% several hours after the initial attack from USD 9,191 to USD 9,058, but did not have a noticeable increase or decrease while the attack was underway.
One possible consequence, according to Melker, would be a greater possibility of the general public associating Bitcoin Cycle with scams.
„It’s just another hurdle to overcome when you’re trying to explain to someone why Bitcoin should be taken seriously,“ the crypto currency trader said.