Ripple CTO issues public warning after suspicious post from John Deaton raises hack concerns

Ripple Labs’ Chief Technology Officer, David Schwartz, has issued a public alert following a suspicious post from John Deaton. He advised followers not to engage with the account until prominent attorney John Deaton could verify whether it had been compromised.

“This post looks wrong in many ways. Please do not trust this until you see confirmation he hasn’t been hacked,” David Schwartz wrote.

The warning followed a post by John Deaton on X touting Arch Public, a crypto-related website. To long-time followers, the post (tagging big names, including crypto exchange Gemini) came across as an endorsement and raised eyebrows. 

Recognized for his vocal, energetic defense of XRP holders and calls for regulatory clarity, including recent lobbying for the Hinman documents to see the light of day, Deaton usually sticks with legal skirmishes, policy wonkery, and the rights of crypto investors. 

By contrast, the Arch Public post came across as strange, with some market watchers finding its lack of background, explanation, or context that usually makes its way into his updates suspicious.

Deaton breaks silence to reaffirm intentions, vows to address concerns in live session

Ripple CTO urged the lawyer’s 354,000 followers to remain cautious following the suspicious post. His concern sparked reactions from other users. Many began questioning whether Deaton’s account had been taken over, especially with the unusually long silence. Others shared screenshots of the post, highlighting the red flags in its writing. 

Deaton later issued a clarification in response. He reiterated his devotion to democratizing investing for everyday people, a cause he argued has informed why he has backed projects like XRP, Bitcoin, SpendTheBits, and the free algorithm from ArchPublic. These projects, he said, were intended to give everyday investors access to opportunities that have traditionally been available only to the financial elite.

Deaton acknowledged past criticism, including accusations of being a Ripple plant and being targeted by Bitcoin maximalists. However, he maintained that if a tool can help people build wealth without requiring payment or risk, he’s willing to stand behind it—regardless of skepticism.

He continued to say that he was traveling and hoped to go live on April 16, 2025, on X at 3 PM EST to address concerns or questions. He noted that he was grateful for genuine concern and misinformation or misperception. 

Deaton also addressed some of his criticism, including allegations that he was a “Ripple plant” and backlash from Bitcoin maximalists.

Still, he continues to stand by his belief that if a platform can help people build wealth without needing to put money on the line or risk anything, it’s worth his support. 

Deaton noted that he would go live on X at 3 PM EST on April 16, 2025, since he was traveling. He noted that he intended to clear up “any question that anyone was confused about. He was grateful for the legitimate concern and acknowledged the mix of misinformation surrounding the incident.

Crypto hacks surge as KiloEx and ZKsync lose over $12M in latest attacks

This incident unfolds against a backdrop of mounting security breaches in the crypto space. This week, decentralized exchange KiloEx lost $7.5 million after hackers exploited vulnerabilities in its pricing mechanism, triggering a nearly 32% plunge in its native token, KILO. 

The attack affected the platform’s multi-chain infrastructure, targeting BNB Smart Chain, Base, and Taiko. 

Additionally, on April 15, hackers targeting Ethereum scaling protocol ZKsync stole about $5 million of its native ZK crypto because of “a compromised” administrative account that allowed them to take control of unclaimed tokens from a recent airdrop.

The crypto industry has suffered a series of thefts, prompting questions about the security of customer funds, with hacking hauls totaling more than $2 billion in 2024 – the fourth straight year where proceeds have topped more than $1 billion.

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