Ripple and its CEO, Brad Garlinghouse, have issued an urgent warning to the community about a surge in deepfake scams on YouTube impersonating the company. According to a recent alert posted on Ripple’s official X account, the blockchain firm has seen a growing number of fraudulent livestreams featuring manipulated footage of its executives.
According to the firm, scammers were hacking legitimate YouTube channels, modifying them to resemble Ripple’s branding, and broadcasting fake XRP giveaways.
What exactly are these deepfake scams, and how do they work?
For those unfamiliar, deepfake scams typically use AI-generated videos to impersonate well-known crypto figures, often manipulating old footage to resemble live broadcasts.
In the case of Ripple, scammers frequently promote fake “special events” or “limited-time offers,” falsely claiming users can double their XRP by sending it to a designated wallet address.
These schemes often feature recurring elements like fake timestamps, doctored transaction histories, and QR codes that lead to phishing websites. As of this writing, crypto.news has identified at least two YouTube channels livestreaming deepfaked versions of Brad Garlinghouse using recycled video clips.
Both livestreams displayed on-screen QR codes, overlays mimicking Ripple’s branding, and AI-generated voiceovers encouraging viewers to join a supposed “giveaway event.” Each channel attracted over 20,000 viewers.
Have Ripple and Its Executives Been Targeted Before?
Yes, this isn’t the first time Ripple or its executives have been targeted in scams. CEO Brad Garlinghouse has previously appeared in a widely circulated deepfake video aimed at XRP holders, falsely promoting another so-called doubling scheme.
Ripple has repeatedly emphasized that neither the company nor its executives will ever ask individuals to send cryptocurrency.
Why Does Ripple Frequently Become a Target for Impersonation?
Ripple remains a frequent target for impersonation due to its high-profile legal battles, mainstream visibility, large and engaged community, and the notable performance of its native token, XRP. With XRP surging nearly 40% over the past month amid a broader crypto market rally, the company has once again found itself in the spotlight—making it an appealing target for scammers.
Fraudsters often exploit bullish market sentiment to lend credibility to their schemes, preying on investors eager to capitalize on rising prices. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has acknowledged this trend, warning that scam activity tends to spike during market upswings.
“Like clockwork, with success and market rallies, scammers ramp up their attacks,” he noted in a recent post on X.
Unfortunately, Ripple isn’t the only brand targeted in such fraudulent campaigns. Scammers routinely impersonate prominent figures and companies across the tech and crypto industries to deceive users.
In one notable example, Apple CEO Tim Cook was impersonated in a deepfake livestream during the company’s “Glowtime” event in September 2024. The fake video, which featured a doctored interview and promoted a bogus crypto giveaway, drew over 355,000 viewers.
Other high-profile targets have included Elon Musk, SpaceX, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak—many of whom were featured in scam videos distributed via YouTube and other social platforms.
Even popular creators haven’t been spared. In 2023, the YouTube channel of well-known content creator DidYouKnowGaming was hacked and briefly repurposed to promote an XRP giveaway scam before being taken down.
Has YouTube done anything to stop these scams?
Ripple previously took legal action against YouTube in 2020, accusing the platform of failing to curb impersonation and fraudulent content, and even profiting from such activity. The lawsuit was dropped in March 2021 after both parties reached an undisclosed settlement and agreed to collaborate on combating scam-related content.
Despite this resolution, similar scams resurfaced in 2023, 2024, and now 2025—raising serious concerns about YouTube’s ability to enforce content protections effectively and consistently.
As of now, YouTube has not issued an official response to the current wave of Ripple-related deepfake scams, despite multiple reports filed by users and affected individuals. While past guidance from the platform has encouraged users to report suspicious videos via its flagging system, many victims argue that enforcement remains slow and inconsistent, allowing scams to remain live long enough to cause real financial harm.
This issue extends beyond Ripple. Just last month, former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao raised similar alarms after deepfake video calls were used in Zoom-based phishing attacks targeting crypto professionals.
A 2024 report from Bitget highlighted the growing scale of the problem, estimating that deepfake-related scams were responsible for at least $79 billion in crypto losses between 2022 and 2024.
