SCAMS featuring billionaire Richard Branson have flooded Twitter/X timelines in the UK, with users questioning their validity.
Branson's name and image is frequently used to conduct cryptocurrency scams, and the latest shows him featuring in a fake article published by The Guardian.
The Virgin founder, who has a net worth of $4.2 billion, is one of the well-known faces scammers use, the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) previously found.
The cons take the form of fake news reports, using well-known media brands such as The Daily Mirror or The Mirror.
The con is made more convincing because the publication used changes depending on the IP address of the user, switching to a Scottish media outlet if it detects the user is in Scotland, for example.
The faked articles feature Branson and other celebrities adding their endorsement to cryptocurrency investment schemes, links to which are provided in the articles.
Upon seeing the posts, one user asked: "Why am I seeing ads for an interview with Richard Branson about every six posts and all from different X accounts?
"Really annoying and obviously spam, but you can't block them unless you pay! Elon sure knows how to drive people away."
It comes just hours after Branson slammed Donald Trump's tariff plans, warning there will be "catastrophic results for ordinary Americans".
On Bluesky, Branson wrote: "The ongoing market response to last week’s US tariff announcement was both predictable and preventable. Even if you agree with the premise of these tariffs, every reasonable effort should be made to give US companies sufficient time to adapt.
"The opposite has happened, and now financial markets everywhere are in freefall, with catastrophic results for ordinary Americans and for the rest of the world. Retirement savings will be wiped out at enormous scale.
"As the dollar is weakening, US consumer prices will rise. And countless small and medium-size enterprises are going bankrupt as a result. This is not a winning long-term strategy. The US government can still turn things around, but it must act in the next few hours.
"This is the moment to own up to a colossal mistake and change course. Otherwise, America will face ruin for years to come."
Branson previously spoke out against scams, saying in 2019: "“My official social media accounts are all verified and, to be clear, I do not send direct or private messages to my followers and do not send personal messages regarding investments, charity donations or speaking engagements from these accounts or any others.
“I do not promote get-rich-quick schemes.”
