69,461 People Impacted by Coinbase Data Breach: A Massive Cyberattack Exposes Sensitive Information

Coinbase's recent data breach has left a trail of devastation, affecting 69,461 individuals worldwide. The exchange revealed that the massive cyberattack occurred in late December but wasn't discovered until earlier this month.

The scope of the breach is staggering, with criminal hackers bribing a small group of overseas customer support agents to copy sensitive information from less than 1% of Coinbase's monthly transacting users.

What Information Was Exposed?

Coinbase confirmed that the stolen data includes names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, masked social security numbers (with only the last four digits visible), masked bank-account numbers, some bank account identifiers, government-ID images, and limited corporate data.

The company emphasized that no credit card information, PINs, or other sensitive payment information was exposed in the breach. However, customers who had linked their social security number to their Coinbase accounts may have seen partial social security numbers displayed on previous transaction history.

The Hackers' Demands

Coinbase received an email earlier this month demanding a $20 million Bitcoin (BTC) payoff in exchange for not releasing the illegally obtained information. The company refused to give in to the hackers' demands and has since estimated that it will pay between $180 million to $400 million in remediation costs and voluntary customer reimbursements.

A Promise to Rebuild Trust

Coinbase Chief Executive Brian Armstrong addressed the incident in a video posted on social media platform X, promising to pay back impacted customers, increase cyberattack defenses, and relocate certain overseas customer support operations.

"We're committed to rebuilding trust with our users," Armstrong said. "We'll work tirelessly to strengthen our security measures and ensure that this kind of incident never happens again."

A Call to Action

Investors should exercise caution when considering investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, or digital assets. The Daily Hodl is not an investment advisor, and users should do their own research before making any high-risk investments.

"Your transfers and trades are at your own risk," the disclaimer states. "Any losses you may incur are your responsibility."