Fake ShinyHunters emails make false recording claims

Published July 25, 2026

Unrelated scammers are impersonating ShinyHunters in emails that demand $2,000 in Bitcoin. They claim to have recorded visits to adult websites, but there is no evidence they accessed recipients' devices.

Report priority
High
Involves
Amtrak

What is known

  • The senders use email addresses exposed in earlier company breaches.
  • They falsely claim to be ShinyHunters and say they recorded visits to adult websites.
  • The messages threaten to contact friends and family unless Bitcoin arrives within 48 hours.

What to do

Check whether you received an email claiming ShinyHunters recorded your activity. An email address alone cannot confirm that your device was accessed.

Do not pay or reply to the sender. The reported device-access claims are unsubstantiated.

Reported details

Unrelated threat actors reused email addresses previously exposed by the ShinyHunters extortion group. ShinyHunters denied involvement, and the reporting found no evidence of malware, camera access, device compromise, or online monitoring.