YouTuber baits MMA fighter into secretly shilling fake NFTs for $1K

Coffeezilla, a YouTuber and crypto investigator, revealed that American mixed martial creator Dillon Danis promoted a fake NFT task without disclosing that helium received $1,000 for the advertisement.

We conscionable tricked Dillon Danis into promoting a fake NFT project. We paid him $1,000 to post, helium didn't disclose it was an #AD, and posted transcript that virtually spells retired S.C.A.M. pic.twitter.com/SVo2SCoN9q

— Coffeezilla (@coffeebreak_YT) February 3, 2023

In the promotion, Danis tweeted retired a integer representation on with a website URL, which according to Coffeezilla, “literally spells retired S.C.A.M.” A further probe from Cointelegraph shows that the website URL was recently created connected Feb. 1, 2023, an important hint to cheque erstwhile checking the credibility of caller projects.

Moreover, the website FAQ intelligibly mentions that nary investors tin get clasp of the “Sourz” NFTs, a important portion of accusation overlooked by the MMA fighter.

SourzNFT FAQ highlighting that nary users tin get the NFTs. Source: sourznft.com (CoffeeZilla)

A akin incidental involving Kim Kardashian was flagged successful June 2021 by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) arsenic she promoted EthereumMax (EMAX) crypto token to her 330 cardinal Instagram followers. According to the SEC, Kardashian violated the anti-touting proviso of the Securities Act by failing to disclose the $250,000 she had received for the promotion.

However, Coffeezilla ensured that the users who fell for the scam NFT task were notified immediately. When users click the “Mint Sourz” button (as shown successful the supra screenshot), they are redirected to a website that cautions against a imaginable scam.

A webpage showcasing crypto projects antecedently promoted by MMA fighter Dillon Danis. Source: sourznft.com (CoffeeZilla)

While Coffeezilla plans to stock much accusation connected this done a follow-up video, the incidental comes arsenic a beardown reminder for influencers and investors to behaviour thorough probe (DYOR) earlier promoting oregon investing successful a project.

Related: FBI seizes $100K successful NFTs from scammer pursuing ZachXBT investigation

Japanese authorities person started exploring blockchain usage cases to lick galore technological issues. Fumio Kishida, the premier curate of Japan, precocious spoke astir the “various possibilities for utilizing Web3” successful the country.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida addressing the Budget Committee connected Feb. 1. Source: YouTube

“If you see DAOs, radical who are funny successful the aforesaid societal issues tin signifier a caller community,” said Kishida. “NFTs tin besides beryllium utilized to diversify the income of creators and support highly loyal fans.”

While the enactment from galore A-list celebrities expedited the nonfungible token (NFT) roar of 2021 and 2022, a fistful ended up promoting unvetted projects to fans purely for idiosyncratic monetary benefits. However, the misconduct retains its popularity successful 2023 arsenic markets embark connected a recovery.