What happened
Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, said Thursday that cybercriminals had hacked the company, stealing sensitive user data for a scheme to rob customers of crypto assets and extort the company.
Who said what
Coinbase said in an SEC filing that an undisclosed number of user names, addresses and government ID images were stolen by someone paying multiple now-fired "contractors or employees working in support roles outside the United States." It estimated it would have to spend $180 million to $400 million to fix the situation and reimburse customers.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The stolen data allowed the hacker to "conduct social engineering attacks" on users to "try to trick them into sending their funds," CEO Brian Armstrong said. Coinbase said the hackers had demanded $20 million in bitcoin to not release the user data, but the company instead would offer that same amount for information about the criminals. "We will prosecute you and bring you to justice," Armstrong said. "You have my answer."
What next?
The ongoing SEC investigation is a rare crypto-linked case that "began during the Biden administration and has continued" under President Donald Trump, the Times said. Since Trump took office, "the SEC has dropped more than a dozen lawsuits and investigations targeting crypto firms," including a separate 2023 case against Coinbase, and "largely disbanded its specialized crypto unit."
-
August 24 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include Putin at Donald Trump's circus, gallons of whitewash, and a foldable cartoon
-
5 Post Office-approved cartoons about mail-in votingCartoons Artists take on reverse logic, Putin's election advice, and more
-
The battle of the weight-loss drugsTalking Point Can Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly regain their former stock market glory? A lot is riding on next year's pills
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to ChinaSpeed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance mergerSpeed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profitsSpeed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new highSpeed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
