US DOJ opens investigation into Coinbase's recent cyberattack

The US Department of Justice has opened a probe into a recent breach at the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global, the company said on Monday.

"We have notified and are working with the DOJ and other US and international law enforcement agencies and welcome law enforcement's pursuit of criminal charges against these bad actors," said Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer, Coinbase.

"Coinbase is not under DOJ investigation, DOJ is investigating the criminal actors," a source told Reuters on Monday.


The company last week said it received an email from an unknown threat actor on May 11, claiming to have information about certain customer accounts as well as internal documents. It expects a hit of $180 million to $400 million from the cyberattack.

Coinbase has said the attackers stole some data, including names, addresses and emails, but they did not get access to login credentials or passwords.

US Justice Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.