Over a month into the self declared "crypto president's" first term, crypto scams are heating up. Driven by a combo of hype and high prices from promises of government legitimacy, the racket is growing — and not even crypto's critics are safe.

Look no further than Paul Krugman, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, crypto skeptic, and former New York Times columnist who found his X-formerly-Twitter account hacked to shill a fake cryptocurrency last night. "Introducing $NYTC — The New York Times Coin," read a post on his account.

Embedded in the post was a link to a fake article, bearing Krugman's byline and mocked up to look like the real New York Times — except on the domain "newyorkstimes.com."

"In a bold move that redefines the intersection of journalism and digital finance, The New York Times has launched its very own cryptocurrency on the Solana blockchain," the article reads. "This venture signals a transformative shift in how traditional media engages with its audience in the digital era."

The fake piece goes on to boast about Krugman's — again, allegedly the author of the piece, so he's apparently lavishing praise on himself — "visionary" role in developing NYTC: "Driven by a belief that decentralized financial tools can empower traditional media and catalyze social progress, Krugman spearheaded the development of NYTC."

The X post was soon deleted. On discovering the hack, Krugman — who left the NYT last year — took to Bluesky to clarify that he didn't launch the crypto token, and doesn't endorse the scam. "If anything appears there, it’s not me," the economist wrote, noting that he was unable to access his X account.

It's no doubt a targeted attack meant to play off of Krugman's outspoken criticism of cryptocurrency as a financial vehicle for criminals. Writing on his Substack last December, he pined that "maybe crypto isn’t digital gold, but digital Benjamins — the $100 bills that play a huge role in illegal activity around the world." Ironically, the hack might be the most compelling evidence yet proving Krugman's point.

Backing up a bit, those who champion crypto — a blanket term for digital tokens like Bitcoin — can be divided into two camps. There are those who see it as a new type of currency, a non-regulated, digital gold to buy and sell things like houses, cars, and property. Then there are those who view crypto as a get-rich-quick scheme, a sort of stock market to be played for short-term gains. These two types of users are fundamentally at odds with one another, and Krugman argues that the former is largely a fantasy, playing cover for the latter.

"Nowadays we use Bitcoin to buy houses and cars, pay our bills, make business investments, and more," wrote Krugman in a 2021 op-ed. "Oh, wait. We don’t do any of those things... Almost the only time we hear about them being used as a means of payment — as opposed to speculative trading — is in association with illegal activity, like money laundering or [ransom payments]."

Flash forward four years, and not much has changed. If anything, it's only become more true — crypto-fueled fraud grew by 40 percent from 2023 to 2024, netting at least $9.9 billion in known revenue. Overall crime using crypto, meanwhile, exceeded $40 billion in 2024, up from $25.6 billion when Krugman wrote his op-ed.

One thing's for sure: as state and federal lawmakers look to punt the US economy onto the blockchain, the dubious crypto scams are just getting started.

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