Fake AI Trading Bot YouTube Drainer Campaign (2026)
Auto-generated score, not yet verified against the scoring model. Under review — treat as indicative, not a verdict.
anchored·5F8pXT…tSkKSummary
A campaign documented by blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs in which nine near-identical YouTube tutorials, marketed as teaching viewers to build an AI-powered arbitrage trading bot with Claude, allegedly led 224 victims to deploy and fund malicious smart contracts between February and August 2026, with 274.60 ETH (about USD 517,205 at the time of transfer) routed to six operator addresses. TRM states the Claude name was used only for marketing and that the scheme involved no phishing link or token approval. It follows an earlier, similar scheme reported by SentinelLABS in 2025.
Connected Entities
1 entityNo connected entities recorded yet — this investigation is not currently linked to any other page in the index.
Timeline(6 events)
2024
SentinelLABS later reported that a similar YouTube trading bot smart contract scam had been active since at least 2024.
CointelegraphAugust 2025
SentinelLABS findings on hijacked YouTube accounts promoting a fake trading bot contract (over 256 ETH stolen) were reported by Cointelegraph.
CointelegraphFebruary 2026
TRM Labs' observed window of victim losses began (reported as running from February to August 2026).
TRM LabsAugust 2026
End of TRM's observed victim-loss window; 274.60 ETH traced to six operator addresses across 224 victims.
TRM LabsSeptember 2026
TRM Labs published its report on the campaign; Crypto Briefing and other outlets covered it shortly after.
TRM Labs / Crypto BriefingDecision Log
- hash: GWfbHTkS94Y5oEoQkXkK1PwbRSJBPVt4f7Gnq7to3bAD
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (1 event). 0 of 5 cited source URLs have an Internet Archive snapshot.
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 10/6/2026, 10:34:57 PM
last updated: 10/6/2026, 10:35:00 PM
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