a16z recovers X account after hack promoting fraudulent token

Crypto venture capital firm a16z (Andreessen Horowitz) has regained control of its official X account after hackers briefly took it over to promote a fraudulent token.

On June 18, 2025, the official X account of a16z was compromised, granting unauthorized access to malicious actors who used the platform to promote a fake Solana-based token under the name “$a16z.”

The breach lasted for a brief period, during which the attackers posted malicious links and false promotions to the account’s audience of over 850,000 followers. 

One of the posts falsely claimed, “It’s Official: $a16z Launches Its Own Token. Today marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of crypto @solana,” alongside a wallet address used to bait users into buying.

Screenshot of a post shared during the a16z X account hack | Source: X

Several other posts pushed fake giveaways and promises of free tokens, including one claiming a $5 million airdrop, all designed to lure unsuspecting users into engaging with the compromised content. On-chain data revealed that the fraudulent token briefly pumped in value following the posts, before crashing nearly 90% in a typical pump-and-dump pattern.

a16z regained control of the account shortly after and swiftly deleted the fraudulent content. In a statement , the firm confirmed the breach was limited to its X account and reassured users that none of the promotions came from them.

“Earlier today, our X account was briefly compromised. During that time, the account promoted a token and other fake content— none of which originated from a16z. Apologies for any confusion caused by the clowns who temporarily took over our account,” the statement read.

The firm’s response received mixed reactions from followers, with many raising concerns about the account’s security. Some users claimed to have fallen victim to the scheme and called on the firm to issue refunds . 

This is not the first time an a16z-affiliated account has been targeted. Back in February, the personal X account of a16z founder Chris Dixon (Shaw) was similarly compromised and used to promote a fake project. At the time, the co-founder described the breach as carefully planned and apologized to those affected by the scheme.