No Public All-Clear Found for IOG’s YouTube Channel Ten Days After Scam
Input Output Group warned users to avoid its official YouTube channel after a fraudulent livestream on September 18. The company is preparing to present Midnight City in Tokyo, but a public notice clearing the channel has not been found.
By SongMarketCap
Ten days after a fake crypto giveaway appeared on Input Output Group’s YouTube channel, the account’s restoration remains publicly unconfirmed. IOG told users to avoid the channel until further notice. Its announcement of an October 10 Midnight City event does not address that warning.
A Fake Giveaway on an Established Channel
The unauthorized livestream appeared to be a Project Catalyst town hall. It featured a figure resembling Charles Hoskinson, a QR code and a promise to double viewers’ funds. Reports estimated that it ran for roughly two hours. The footage was suspected of being AI manipulated, but no published technical analysis has established that it was a deepfake.
Hoskinson said IOG was working with YouTube to remove the broadcast and reset access. IOG warned users not to open links from the channel, send funds or share personal information. No verified destination wallet or confirmed loss total has been disclosed.
The fraudulent broadcast appeared on an account that Cardano users already knew for development updates and technical presentations. Its established identity gave the giveaway the appearance of an official IOG communication.
What the Incident Did and Did Not Affect
The reported compromise concerned IOG’s YouTube account. IOG has not reported a related breach of Cardano’s blockchain, the Midnight network or user wallets. The company has also not publicly explained how the attackers gained access.
IOG’s other work has continued. On October 10, Hoskinson and the Midnight City team are scheduled to demonstrate their persistent digital world at Happo-en in Tokyo. Visitors will be able to see its AI agents in action, speak with the developers and get help creating an agent. Attendance requires the organizer’s approval.
The Channel Still Needs Its Own Update
The Tokyo event has an official program and registration page. Neither establishes who currently controls IOG’s YouTube account. The channel’s archived videos being visible would not establish that either.
No public IOG statement confirming restored control or withdrawing the September 18 warning was found in the sources reviewed for this article. That leaves the company’s instruction to avoid the channel as its last identified public guidance for viewers, even as the Midnight City presentation moves ahead.