Suspicions of hacking arise due to Near Protocol’s ‘darkness’ and ‘sovereignty’ X posts

Near Protocol’s official X account sent out a series of tweets urging its nearly two million followers to “reclaim your sovereignty” and giving other unusual instructions. On May 8, at around 6:18 pm UTC, Near Protocol’s X account posted a 27-second video in Morse code, which was later decoded by Cointelegraph. The message read, “Darkness is coming.” Two hours later, the X account posted four tweets in a gothic font, accompanied by messages such as “the sun rises in the east,” “take back your thoughts,” “darkness,” and “reclaim your sovereignty.” Near’s account name and description were also changed to fit the gothic theme. Near Protocol did not respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment, leading some in the crypto community to suspect a possible hijack. However, a few supporters believe that these tweets indicate something significant happening in the ecosystem. Earlier this year, CoinGecko’s X account was compromised and used for a phishing scam, but the company was able to regain control. Near Foundation, the developer of the Near Protocol, recently laid off 40% of its staff as part of an effort to focus on more impactful activities. The company plans to continue reducing its footprint as it moves towards true decentralization.