The YouTube channel for a significant Australian broadcaster, the Seven Network, has faced a shocking cyberattack. The channel, known for its reputable news coverage, was hijacked and rebranded to appear as automaker Tesla.

Disturbingly, the channel displayed videos featuring an artificial intelligence-generated deep fake of Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, promoting a crypto scam.

Deep Fake Scandal

As the breach unfolded, the channel's familiar branding was swapped out for Tesla's. The fake Elon Musk was seen in multiple live streams, falsely claiming to be distributing crypto. At the time of writing, three such live streams had amassed a total viewership of approximately 150,000.

However, it remains to be seen how many of these viewers were legitimate and how many were bots designed to inflate the numbers.

"The AI-faked Musks were touting a common 'double your money' scam -- promising to send back double the amount of any crypto sent to an address."

Scam Details

The deep fake Musk propagated a well-known scam in cryptocurrency: the 'double your money' scheme.

This fraudulent activity lures victims by promising to return double the amount of any cryptocurrency sent to a specific address. Such scams have been prevalent, exploiting people's trust in high-profile figures like Elon Musk.

Broken Links and Verification

Links to the 7News YouTube channel became broken during the attack. Nevertheless, the channel continued to display the news organization's verification tick, adding a veneer of legitimacy to the scam and potentially deceiving more viewers.

Ongoing Investigation

This incident is still unfolding, and more information will be provided as it becomes available. The breach highlights the growing threat of deep fake technology and its potential misuse in cybercrimes. The authorities and the Seven Network are expected to investigate the matter thoroughly to prevent future occurrences.