A phishing campaign targeting XRP holders has prompted a direct warning from Hussein Zangana, director of community at the XRP Ledger Foundation and known as Vet. The scheme relies on a fabricated social media post from an impersonated Ripple account that promotes nonexistent “XRP Holder Tiers.”

The false message asserts that these tiers unlock special benefits and instructs recipients to visit an external website to claim an XRP badge. In reality, the site is designed to extract wallet connections or recovery phrases, giving attackers full control over victims’ funds.

Details of the Fraudulent Campaign

The counterfeit announcement was flagged by the XRP-focused account BankXRP, which identified the post as originating from a fake Ripple profile. Users were urged to avoid any interaction with the linked site. Neither Ripple nor the XRP Ledger requires holders to register for rewards, claim badges, or verify ownership through third-party portals.

Vet confirmed the entire promotion has no connection to Ripple and that the company has never introduced holder tiers or badge programs. He advised the community to disregard the material and remain cautious about unsolicited reward offers.

BankXRP reinforced the same advice, stressing that seed phrases grant irreversible access to digital assets and should never be entered in response to online verification requests.

Pattern of Impersonation in the XRP Ecosystem

Reward-based phishing remains a frequent method used against cryptocurrency communities. Scammers create urgency by promising exclusive perks, then funnel users toward malicious websites that mimic legitimate platforms. Similar tactics have appeared in other recent incidents involving the broader XRP space.

XRPL developer Wietse Wind has previously cautioned against fraudulent projects claiming official status, noting that no authentic Xaman token exists. Separately, the liquid staking protocol Firelight, built for XRP on the Flare Network, alerted users to impostor social media accounts. Firelight stated it maintains only one official X account, one Discord server, and one website, and asked community members to ignore any other profiles claiming affiliation.

Authorities in Seoul recently detained three individuals linked to a separate fraudulent staking platform that impersonated Flare Network and FXRP services. That operation reportedly collected approximately 3.4 million XRP from 71 victims.

Security Guidance for Holders

Legitimate ownership of XRP does not depend on participation in any tier system, badge claim, or wallet-connection process. Official communications from Ripple and the XRP Ledger Foundation are issued through verified channels only. Any request to connect a wallet or supply a recovery phrase in exchange for supposed benefits should be treated as a security threat.

Community members are advised to cross-check announcements against known official accounts and to avoid clicking unfamiliar links distributed via social media.