SMS or email spam, fake text message phishing from scammer concept. Many red envelope with system hacked warning alert icon, scam malware spreading virus on message showing on mobile phone in hand.

Key Takeaways:

Over $45 million was stolen from Coinbase users in one week through social engineering scams, according to blockchain analyst ZackXBT.
Annualized losses from similar scams could exceed $330 million, with no other exchange reportedly facing such scale.
The FBI and industry leaders, including Coinbase’s CSO, are calling for improved security frameworks and scam reporting systems.

Over $45 million has been stolen from Coinbase users in just one week through social engineering scams, according to blockchain investigator ZackXBT.

The thefts are part of a larger pattern of increasingly sophisticated attacks that target human vulnerabilities rather than technical flaws.

13/ Coinbase needs to urgently make changes as more and more users are being scammed for tens of millions every month.

Other major exchanges do not have similar panels created by scammers for fraud.

While the victims are partially responsible it’s unreasonable to expect… pic.twitter.com/KJJf8kFdlB
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) February 3, 2025

ZackXBT noted that no other major exchange faces similar levels of exploitation and estimates the annual losses from such scams could exceed $330 million.

Federal agencies, including the FBI, have backed these concerns.

In 2024, the FBI issued multiple alerts about fraudsters impersonating crypto exchange staff, using fake job offers and malicious software disguised as employment or investment tools—some tied to North Korean hacking groups.

In early 2025, there was a reported surge in phishing emails that mimicked legitimate communications, tricking users into sending funds to fraudulent wallets.

In response, Coinbase’s Chief Security Officer, Phillip Martin, has called for a unified reporting framework to help streamline scam responses and bolster industry-wide protections.

These events underline the urgent need for stronger safeguards across the crypto sector to fight this rising threat.