Key Takeaways:
- David Schwartz, CTO of Ripple cautioned users to expect a major surge in the number of giveaway and airdrop scams.
- There’s a reasonable possibility that many of the accounts that have impersonated him on Instagram, Telegram and other social media sites are fake, Schwartz said.
- It is coming as scammers are taking multiple approaches to target XRPL users by providing fake promotions and phishing attacks.
Ripple CTO Emeritus, David “JoelKatz” Schwartz has issued a fresh warning to members of the XRP community following a widespread rise in cryptos scams targeting Ripple users on various social media platforms.
The founding figure of XRP Ledger called on people to exercise caution, as con artists keep impersonating Ripple-related individuals and trying to lure consumers into stealing their wallet or cash through fake airdrops, giveaways and token sales.
Read More: Ripple CTO Reveals Why XRP Never Powered XRPL Consensus in Stunning Governance Twist
David Schwartz Warns XRP Users About Scam Explosion
In a recent post on X, Schwartz said there has been a “huge escalation” in fraudulent activity aimed at XRP holders and XRPL participants.
SCAM ALERT: There has been a huge escalation lately in airdrop and giveaway scams targetting XRPL users lately. Any such posts you see are likely scams.
Anyone claiming to be me on Instagram, Telegram, or almost anywhere else is likely a scammer.
Stay safe XRP fam.
— David ‘JoelKatz’ Schwartz (@JoelKatz) May 14, 2026
According to Schwartz, most giveaway or airdrop promotions currently circulating within the XRP ecosystem should be treated as suspicious. “Any such posts you see are likely scams,” he warned.
He also cautioned users against accounts pretending to be him on platforms outside X, especially Instagram and Telegram. Schwartz stated that anyone claiming to represent him on those channels is “likely a scammer.”
The warning quickly spread through the XRP community as concerns continue growing around phishing attacks and fake crypto campaigns targeting retail investors.
Read More: Ripple CTO Holds XRP Only After Massive Gains, Warns Crypto Investors to Sell Some
Fake Giveaways Continue Hitting Crypto Communities
Scammers Use Social Media and Deepfake Tactics
The rise of crypto giveaway scams is one of the most prevalent types of fraud in the digital currency sector. It’s common to have an user follow a link to a fake website that mimics an established exchange or any other established blockchain entity, hoping that they’ll send crypto, or click on the link and connect their wallets.
There have been numerous fake campaigns that require small sums of deposits or verification actions for claiming access to free XRP or bonuses. Typically, a victim will never get the money back after a transaction is made.
Over the years, this community of XRP has been repeatedly targeted by these frauds due to its active community.
Past scams have included leveraging fake Ripple livestreams, fraudulent YouTube accounts and using AI-generated deepfake videos of Ripple executives to artificially generate a Ripple get-rich scheme via XRP give-aways.
XRP Community Faces Rising Security Risks
The update comes in the midst of the ongoing expansion of cryptocurrency scams that have sprang up in various blockchain communities. Due to the wide availability and sophistication of artificial intelligence, phishing links, fake social media sites and scams designed to look authentic are increasingly common.
Ripple executives have previously shouted out the fact that the company will not be sending out arbitrary XRP tokens via unapproved channels.
The remarks also come amid worries with regards to social engineering to the inside of cryptocurrency communities, the place scammers frequently capitalize on excitement, urgency, and also the genuine faith of identifiable actors.
