The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on May 16 that a resident of Huntsville, Alabama, has been sentenced to over a year behind bars for his involvement in a cyber intrusion targeting the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) social media presence. Eric Council Jr., 26, received a 14-month prison sentence followed by three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy charges related to identity theft and access device fraud. Authorities say Council’s actions led to a momentary but significant spike in the price of bitcoin by exploiting the SEC’s platform to spread false financial information.

According to the DOJ, Council executed a SIM-swapping operation to hijack a victim’s cellular service, which enabled him and his co-conspirators to gain access to the SEC’s official account on social media platform X. Using that access, the group published a fake post announcing the approval of bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs)—a long-anticipated development among investors. The announcement had immediate consequences on the cryptocurrency market, the DOJ described:

Immediately following the false announcement, the price of BTC increased by more than $1,000 per BTC. Following the correction, the value of BTC decreased by more than $2,000 per BTC.

Council, who used a forged ID to impersonate the account holder, received payment in bitcoin for his role in the scheme. BTC was trading around $46K on Jan. 10, 2024, when the SEC officially approved spot bitcoin ETFs.

Federal officials underscored the threat such actions pose to the integrity of public markets. FBI Criminal Investigative Division Acting Assistant Director Darren Cox stressed:

The deliberate takeover of a federal agency’s official communications platform was a calculated criminal act meant to deceive the public and manipulate financial markets.

“By spreading false information to influence the markets, Council attempted to erode public trust and exploit the financial system,” he added.

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