Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky confirmed his X account was compromised earlier this week after a now-deleted thread about tokenizing real-world assets appeared on the profile.
Chesky acknowledged the breach in a July 17 post, joking, “To the person who hacked my account earlier this week: thanks for all the new crypto followers. To my new crypto followers: I’m going to be a very disappointing follow.” His message made clear the long thread on blockchain-based ownership and financial markets was not his commentary.
The deleted posts drew attention because they read like a substantive case for tokenizing physical assets—an unusual topic for an Airbnb announcement and one that initially led some observers to treat the content as an authentic shift in the company’s stance. Airbnb moved quickly to secure the account with X, according to a Fortune report.
Unlike many recent social-media compromises that directly promote token launches, fake presales, or giveaway scams, reports so far have not linked Chesky’s hacked thread to a token sale, wallet-draining link, or explicit crypto fraud. Still, the episode underscores a familiar danger: high-profile profiles lend instant credibility to crypto claims, so even commentary-like posts can mislead audiences.
That pattern has played out elsewhere. This week attackers also hijacked SpaceX’s X account in an incident tied to the SCATMAN token, and in May hackers used Keith Gill’s verified Roaring Kitty account to promote and dump a Solana-based token—an exploit reportedly leaving traders with about $2.8 million in losses. Those examples show how criminals use trusted names and large followings to amplify illicit schemes.
Takeaway for the crypto community: verified accounts remain prime targets. Even when a breach doesn’t immediately push a token sale, misleading or false posts from high-profile handles can create market confusion and reputational damage—so always verify major crypto-related claims through official channels.
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