UK lawmaker’s X account hacked to boost scam ‘House of Commons Coin’

UK Member of Parliament and Leader of the House of Commons, Lucy Powell, had her X (formerly Twitter) account hacked on April 15, 2025. The hackers used her verified account to promote a fraudulent cryptocurrency called "House of Commons Coin" ($HOC or $HCC), falsely claiming it was an official initiative tied to the British Parliament.

Posts described the token as a "community-driven digital currency" with slogans like "Transparency, participation, trust," and even featured the House of Commons emblem.

The scam aimed to manipulate digital asset markets using a "pump and dump" scheme, where the value of the coin is artificially inflated to attract investors before being sold off for profit.

However, the scam saw limited success, with only 34 transactions generating an estimated profit of around £225 ($300). The posts were quickly deleted after Powell’s team secured her account.

This incident highlights a growing trend where cybercriminals exploit social media accounts of high-profile individuals to lend credibility to fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes.

Similar hacks have targeted other prominent figures, including BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg and Ghanaian President John Mahama in earlier cases.

Cybersecurity experts are calling for stricter measures, such as multifactor authentication, to prevent such breaches in the future.

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