Alleged Coinbase support impersonator stole ~$2M via social engineering
A blockchain investigator known as ZachXBT says he identified a suspected Canadian scammer who impersonated Coinbase support and stole more than $2 million in crypto over the past year. ZachXBT traced the actor through Telegram screenshots, social posts, wallet transactions and a leaked call video showing the suspect offering fake customer support. The attacker reportedly used social engineering to coax victims into revealing account access or making transfers, then spent proceeds on expensive Telegram usernames, nightlife, gambling and social media status. ZachXBT said the suspect repeatedly deleted accounts to hide tracks but still revealed address and contact clues via public posts. The investigator declined to publish the suspect’s home address to comply with platform rules. The report reiterates standard protections for users: keep large holdings in hardware wallets, never share seed phrases or login credentials, avoid clicking unsolicited links or responding to cold calls, and always contact exchange support through verified channels. Primary keywords: Coinbase, social engineering, crypto scam. Secondary/semantic keywords: impersonation, Telegram, wallet tracing, security best practices.
Bearish
High-profile scams that target major exchanges undermine user trust and can increase perceived counterparty risk for centralized platforms. This story — alleging a $2M theft via Coinbase support impersonation — reinforces concerns about account security and exchange-hosted custody. Short-term, such reports can trigger modest sell pressure as retail users re-evaluate on-exchange balances and move funds to self-custody, and heightened caution can reduce trading volume. Market impact is unlikely to be systemic: $2M is small relative to total market cap and Coinbase’s holdings. However, repeated social-engineering losses have historically pressured prices modestly and boosted demand for hardware wallets and privacy/security tools. For traders: expect short-term volatility around news circulation, potential outflows from retail accounts, and a small risk premium on centralized-exchange custody. Over the long term, continued scams push adoption of stronger user security practices and institutional-grade controls, which is neutral-to-positive for market stability but may slow exchange-driven liquidity growth until trust is rebuilt. Similar past incidents (support-impersonation or phishing causing user losses) caused localized sell-offs and increased investment in custody solutions rather than broad market crashes.