U.S. Justice Department opens probe into Coinbase data breach

The U.S. Department of Justice has started investigating a recent cyberattack on Coinbase Global, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, the company said Monday.

“We have notified and are working with the DOJ and other law enforcement agencies and welcome their pursuit of criminal charges against these bad actors,” said Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s chief legal officer.

Last week, Coinbase revealed it received an email on May 11 from an unknown hacker claiming to have information on some customer accounts and internal company documents. The company expects financial losses from the breach to range between $180 million and $400 million.

Coinbase said the attackers stole data such as customer names, addresses, and emails, but did not gain access to login credentials or passwords.