Coinbase Knew About the Data Leak Months Before $400M Breach—Ouch

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Coinbase had a heads-up about a customer data leak at Taskus four months before the breach that’s going to cost them a whopping $400 million. But hey, better late than never, right?

200 Employees Canned Over a Data Leak? Yikes. Talk About Unlucky.

So, here’s the scoop: Coinbase was informed about a customer data leak at Taskus, its outsourcing partner, four months before hackers swooped in for the kill. According to some juicy insider info from Reuters, an employee at Taskus got caught taking selfies with her work computer (well, sort of), and someone thought, “Hey, let’s pass this info to hackers for a little cash, shall we?” Seems reasonable, right?

Turns out, this wasn’t just a casual mistake. No, no—there were actual accomplices involved, allegedly. Some shady business was going down in Indore (which, by the way, is not known for this level of drama). Naturally, an investigation was launched, and—surprise, surprise—200 Taskus employees were shown the door. But let’s not pretend they went quietly. Oh no. They’re now accusing Taskus of pulling a “We don’t need you anymore” move with zero notice. Yikes. Some serious ‘Oops!’ vibes happening here.

Despite all of this, Coinbase didn’t bother to say anything until May, when the hackers, clearly not shy, demanded $20 million in exchange for not releasing the sensitive user data they stole. Sure, Coinbase could’ve been proactive, but why bother, right? So, they finally ‘fessed up on May 15, and—surprise, again—they claimed the hackers only targeted the internal customer support systems and accessed data from “fewer than 1% of monthly transacting users.” No biggie. Except it kind of is. Like, do we really believe that?

And let’s not forget the increasingly dramatic scene of wealthy crypto holders being snatched by criminals who seem to have eerily detailed information about them. We’re talking kidnappings, ransom demands—you know, all the fun stuff. Some experts are even suggesting the cost of this breach might actually be a lot higher than just the $400 million. Go figure. The breach, after all, involves more than just cold, hard cash—it’s personal data, people!

Coinbase, however, has made some moves post-breach. They’ve apparently severed ties with the Taskus employees involved (those poor souls), tightened their controls, and started to take action. I mean, it only took them months and a $20 million extortion attempt to get there. Better late than never, right? Taskus, in response, said the two employees were fired back in January. But seriously, who’s counting?

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2025-06-03 22:29