Most active commenters
  • TheAmazingRace(3)
  • voidspark(3)

←back to thread

Coinbase says hackers bribed staff to steal customer data, demanding $20M ransom

(www.cnbc.com)
410 points gpi | 12 comments | 15 May 25 15:52 UTC | HN request time: 0.013s | source | bottom
Show context
thepasswordis ◴[15 May 25 16:40 UTC] No.43996769[source]▶
The problem is that it seems like the data that leaked is also the data that would be used to do account recovery.

And what that means is that

1) If you lose access to your account (through either your own fault, or coinbases fault) that the process of recovering it may not be so straightforward anymore.

2) Hackers can try to “recover” accounts now using this leaked info.

This is a huge problem. What coinbase needs are IRL offices where you can go and do things like account recovery, and where people trying to steal money can be caught and prosecuted (and makes a huge barrier for the overseas thieves who are usually doing this)

The only solution here is: hardware 2 factor like yubikeys.

replies(9): >>43996798 #>>43998374 #>>43998426 #>>43999299 #>>43999324 #>>43999430 #>>43999499 #>>43999782 #>>44001348 #
piva00 ◴[15 May 25 16:43 UTC] No.43996798[source]▶
> What coinbase needs are IRL offices where you can go and do things like account recovery, and where people trying to steal money can be caught and prosecuted (and makes a huge barrier for the overseas thieves who are usually doing this)

That's just a bank.

replies(3): >>43996827 #>>43997006 #>>43997941 #
lovich ◴[15 May 25 18:37 UTC] No.43997941[source]▶
Watching crypto enthusiasts run into every problem that society already tackled with in the past when developing currency and its controls, and then coming up with solutions that look exactly the same as what dirty fiat currency uses, has been a source of much entertainment the past few years
replies(5): >>43998063 #>>43998367 #>>43998832 #>>43998852 #>>43999920 #
voidspark ◴[15 May 25 18:48 UTC] No.43998063[source]▶
This is an exchange problem, not a crypto problem. You don’t need an exchange to hold crypto.
replies(3): >>43998173 #>>43998174 #>>43998216 #
1. TheAmazingRace ◴[15 May 25 19:03 UTC] No.43998216{3}[source]▶
But they need exchanges to get real money to flow in and out of cryptocurrency easily. Without it, cryptocurrency by itself would likely be worth far less than it is today.
replies(1): >>43998246 #
2. voidspark ◴[15 May 25 19:06 UTC] No.43998246[source]▶
Yes that's true, but no need to hold your crypto there as a permanent storage. Once your fiat is exchanged to crypto, immediately transfer the crypto to your private wallet.
replies(1): >>43998741 #
3. wmf ◴[15 May 25 20:00 UTC] No.43998741[source]▶
This just trades the unsolved exchange hacking problem for the unsolved lost/stolen keys problem.
replies(2): >>43998946 #>>43999042 #
4. int_19h ◴[15 May 25 20:24 UTC] No.43998946{3}[source]▶
That problem is trivially solved by backups.
replies(1): >>43999133 #
5. voidspark ◴[15 May 25 20:33 UTC] No.43999042{3}[source]▶
Theft or loss has always been a problem since life evolved on Earth.

I don't think anyone claimed that crypto was un-losable or un-stealable. It's not magic.

https://cryptosteel.com

replies(1): >>44006240 #
6. wmf ◴[15 May 25 20:41 UTC] No.43999133{4}[source]▶
Backups don't solve seed phrase phishing for example.
replies(2): >>44000969 #>>44002539 #
7. ◴[16 May 25 01:20 UTC] No.44000969{5}[source]▶
8. johnisgood ◴[16 May 25 07:05 UTC] No.44002539{5}[source]▶
As opposed to the bank's ...? Or your other account's ..., what exactly, passwords? Phising is everywhere. How many times have you heard the elderly have their money stolen, both online and in real life? It happened to my grandma. The mailman is bringing her own pension as cash, and guess what, he has scammed my grandma for years! The food delivery guy who has been delivering lunch for my grandma, guess what he did? He scammed my grandma out of her money! We are talking about cash, right now, and no phising involved, just good old "lying".
replies(1): >>44006167 #
9. TheAmazingRace ◴[16 May 25 14:49 UTC] No.44006167{6}[source]▶
Hence why cryptocurrency would never replace regular banks for regular people. The situation with scams and thefts has only gotten worse. Not your keys, not your coin.
replies(1): >>44007201 #
10. ◴[16 May 25 14:54 UTC] No.44006240{4}[source]▶
11. johnisgood ◴[16 May 25 16:17 UTC] No.44007201{7}[source]▶
I definitely cannot imagine my grandma making use of crypto, or PayPal, or her bank's online site. :)
replies(1): >>44010389 #
12. TheAmazingRace ◴[16 May 25 22:36 UTC] No.44010389{8}[source]▶
LOL. Point taken.