Hackers breached a Coinbase partner and stole customer names and balances, then demanded $20 million. Coinbase refused and offered a $20 million bounty for the attackers instead. The company's refusal to pay signals that extortion won't work, though customers should watch for follow-up scams using the leaked contact data.
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You have got to hear about this. I'm following a hacking story today about the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. Now, Coinbase suffered a breach from a third-party partner which exposed some private customer data like names, balances, and contact information. But the customers' private keys and passwords were not exposed, which is a good thing. It keeps their accounts safe. The cybercriminals then demanded a $20 million ransom to keep it all quiet. And Coinbase essentially told them to go pound sand, that they would not pay the $20 million ransom, but instead create a $20 million bounty for those people that would provide information leading to the attacker's arrest. That literally turns the tables on the attackers who ironically now have to worry about their third parties who knew they conducted the attack. And this sends a huge message. First, it shows how Coinbase takes security seriously. They know never pay ransomware or other digital extortion, as that is simply rewarding your enemy and encouraging them and others to attack you again. Refusing to capitulate signals to other potential criminals that Coinbase is a wasted effort as they won't pay. Secondly, by matching the ransom demands as a bounty for the attackers, which is a brilliant move, attackers must contend with their friends who may know that they conducted the attack and want to cash in. This makes the hunters now become the hunted. Now, unfortunately, with the loss of customer name and contact data, there may be some social engineering attacks that crop up. So if you are a customer of Coinbase, beware, look out for those because you don't want to fall for those types of social engineering attacks. But Coinbase has already stepped up and said if that does happen, they'll work with customers to make them whole again. Coinbase is being transparent with customers and the cybersecurity industry, and I can't emphasize this enough, that builds trust. Being transparent is exactly the opposite of what the attackers want. And we know never follow the adversary's plan. Because they design it for them to win and for us to lose. So overall, I absolutely love this story. This is how every company should be prepared and respond to ransomware and digital extortion. This is what good cybersecurity looks like.
