Here’s what happened in crypto today
Today in crypto, the New York Attorney General is suing to recover over $2 million in crypto stolen from victims tricked into buying crypto with fake promises of remote work, Litecoin’s X social media page was temporarily hacked to promote a fake token, Heritage Distilling — a Washington-based crafts spirits producer — will now accept Bitcoin as payment.NY Attorney General files lawsuit to recoup $2.2M in crypto lost to job scamNew York Attorney General Letitia James has initiated legal action to recover more than $2 million in cryptocurrency swindled from victims who were duped into buying crypto under the false promise of securing remote work opportunities.“Scammers sent text messages to New Yorkers promising them good-paying, flexible jobs only to trick them into purchasing cryptocurrency and then stealing it from them,” James said in a Jan. 9 statement.The scammers tricked victims with payment promises, telling them to create crypto accounts, deposit funds, and review products on fake websites that looked like legitimate brands.Victims were told to keep a crypto balance that matches or exceeds the cost of the products they reviewed. They were promised “they were not purchasing the products” and that their money was only needed to help “legitimize” the data.In return, they were assured they’d get their money back plus a commission, but they never received a cent.With assistance from the US Secret Service, James said that the stolen crypto has been frozen and urges people to be cautious of text messages from unknown senders claiming to offer jobs or other opportunities.Litecoin X account hacked in fake token promotionLitecoin's X social media account fell victim to a hack on Jan. 11 by a scammer using the account to promote a fake Litecoin token on the Solana network.The scammer included a link to a pump.fun token and a token contract address in the posts, which have since been taken down by the Litecoin team after regaining control of the social media account."We're still investigating the issue," the team announced in an update and said the account was breached due to a compromised delegated account that has since been removed.The incident was merely the latest account breach targeting crypto projects, crypto industry professionals, and influencers on X over the last several months.US distillery adopts BTC for treasury useHeritage Distilling, a Washington-based craft spirits producer, said that it will begin accepting Bitcoin as payment and hold it as a treasury asset.On Jan. 10, the company adopted a Bitcoin (BTC) treasury policy to accept Bitcoin for products and services via its e-commerce platform. This makes Heritage the first publicly traded spirits company to integrate Bitcoin into its business model.The company’s new policy states that it is willing “to sell its products and services in return for Bitcoin as a form of payment knowing that even if the price of Bitcoin falls at any given time.” “The benefits of attracting a new set of buyers, consumers, and fans, along with the margin cushion the Company can create, coupled with the potential to see Bitcoin increase in value, more than offsets the risk of loss,” reads the new policy.Heritage Distilling’s website currently indicates that Bitcoin will be accepted for online purchases “soon.”The company’s decision to accept Bitcoin follows the formation of its Technology and Cryptocurrency Committee, chaired by Matt Swann, a former chief technology officer at Nubank. Heritage announced the appointment of Matt Swann to its Board of Directors, effective Jan. 6.