ClawdBot Developer reports GitHub account hijacking by crypto scammers

Peter Steinberger, the founder of the well-known ClawdBot project, has become a victim of account takeover. According to PANews, his GitHub account was compromised by cybercriminals who intended to misuse the project for fraudulent activities. The developer reached out to the GitHub community via the X platform and is actively seeking support to recover his account.

The Hack and Recovery Efforts

Steinberger emphasized publicly that he is not the initiator of any token projects and denies all allegations that his GitHub commit history has been misused. The account takeover poses a serious threat to the integrity of the open-source project. The developer is currently working with the GitHub community to secure the compromised account and restore his access.

Authenticity Confirmation and Trademark Issues

The renaming of the affected account was done at the instruction of Anthropic and was not a voluntary decision by Steinberger. Due to trademark infringement, he had to change the account name from ClawdBot. This change caused technical complications during the GitHub rebranding, and malicious actors in the crypto community subsequently registered the related X account as a precaution.

Risks for Developers in the Crypto Community

The hijacking attack on Steinberger’s account highlights a growing threat to developers in the crypto sector. Cybercriminals often use hacked GitHub accounts to spread malicious code versions or conduct phishing campaigns. Steinberger’s case demonstrates the importance of strong authentication mechanisms and regular security audits for project maintainers. Restoring his account is prioritized to prevent future misuse cases.