DOJ Investigates Coinbase Data Breach and Insider Bribery

Full Report: DOJ Coinbase Investigation and Data Breach

DOJ is investigating Coinbase data breach

The US Department of Justice is reportedly conducting a probe over Coinbase’s contracted customer service agents in India, who accepted bribes in exchange for allowing criminals access to user data.  

According to a Monday Bloomberg story, the U.S. The Department of Justice is looking into a recent cyberattack on Coinbase Global, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in the world. 

Source Bloomberg

"We have notified and are working with the DOJ and other US and international law enforcement agencies and welcome law enforcement's pursuit of criminal charges against these bad actors," said Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer, Coinbase. 

After receiving an email from an anonymous threat actor on May 11, the organisation initially disclosed the incident last week. The unnamed person asserted that they had access to internal papers and specific client accounts.  

The project might lose anywhere from $180 million to $400 million as a result of the hack. The extent of the breach is currently being looked into by the criminal division of the Department of Justice in Washington, particularly the circumstances surrounding the insider involvement.

First, the US crypto exchange disclosed that cyberattackers had stolen sensitive customer data and threatened to publish it unless the company paid a $20 million ransom.

Coinbase has clarified that the attackers stole some data, including names, addresses and emails, but they did not get access to login credentials or passwords. 

The DOJ has yet to respond on this. According to officials, the enquiry is still ongoing and may take several months.

Also he explained that instead of paying the ransom, the company is establishing a $20 million reward or bounty program for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the attackers. He also said the company is planning to reimburse customers affected by the incident.  "No, we're not going to pay your ransom," Company CEO Brian Armstrong said.

Coin stock price fluctuated following the news of the investigation by DOJ

Coinbase's stock price did experience fluctuations following the news of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into a recent data breach. This news has made investors worried, and Coin stock price has gone up and down because of the DOJ investigation. 

Even though the DOJ hasn't said anything publicly, experts say this situation shows the increasing risk of insider problems in big cryptocurrency companies. As the company works with the police, people in the crypto world are paying attention—not just to outside attacks, but also to the risks from people inside the company who could harm user safety.

Security concern raised among crypto users after coin base hack

The recent Coinbase hack has raised several security concerns among crypto users, including big whales and sharks. In response to these concern Company has published a blog on its website after the cyber attack stating that Security and transparency are core to Coinbase. Consistent with that commitment, we’re publicly detailing an extortion attempt against us and our customers. Instead of funding criminal activity, we have investigated the incident, reinforced our controls, and will reimburse customers impacted by this incident.