The official X account for renowned heavy metal band Metallica fell victim to a hacking incident, during which the attackers exploited the breach to promote a Solana token named METAL. However, Metallica’s team has managed to regain control of the account and has swiftly removed all posts related to the token.
Metallica’s X account initially shared a post on June 26, announcing the token and claiming it was developed in collaboration with Ticketmaster. The token was launched on pump.fun, a token deployer platform built on Solana. Despite this announcement, Ticketmaster did not make any statements regarding the partnership and has yet to respond to requests for comment.
In their posts, Metallica’s account also suggested that fintech firm MoonPay was involved with the METAL token. However, MoonPay’s President, Keith Grossman, refuted these claims in an X post, stating, “MoonPay does NOT support METAL.” Later, MoonPay further addressed the situation on X, cautioning users about potential scams and referencing Metallica’s popular album and single from 1986, “Master of Puppets.”
The hackers made a series of subsequent posts in an apparent attempt to attract buyers, asserting that METAL token holders could redeem exclusive items such as “free concert tickets,” customized gaming consoles, and merchandise. One post even mentioned that the token would offer staking rewards.
According to Dexscreener data, the total value of the METAL token briefly reached $3.37 million approximately 20 minutes after its launch. However, its value swiftly plummeted, and within three hours, its total market capitalization had fallen to $90,000.
The price of the METAL token has since dropped by over 97% from its peak, as indicated by DEX Screener. Additionally, it has almost completely crashed from its initial high, which occurred shortly after Metallica’s account shared information about the token.
The method by which Metallica’s account was breached remains unclear. The band and their management team have not been immediately available for comment on the matter.
Update June 26, 3:20 am UTC: The headline of this article has been modified, and additional information from MoonPay has been included.