Transak, a Miami-based fiat-to-crypto payment gateway utilized by prominent blockchain platforms such as Metamask, Trust Wallet, Coinbase, and Ledger, announced on Monday that it experienced a data breach impacting approximately 92,554 users, or 1.14% of its total user base.
In a blog post, the company detailed that the breach occurred when an attacker gained unauthorized access to an employee’s laptop via a sophisticated phishing attack.
We have recently identified that an attacker gained unauthorized access to one of our employee’s laptop through a sophisticated phishing attack. Using the compromised credentials, the attacker was able to log in to the system of a third-party KYC vendor that we use for document scanning and verification services. As a result, the attacker gained access to specific user information stored within the vendor’s dashboard.
This breach allowed the attacker to log into the system of a third-party Know Your Customer (KYC) vendor responsible for document scanning and verification services. As a result, sensitive personal information, including names, Date of Birth, ID documents and user selfies were compromised. However, Transak emphasized that no financial data or sensitive assets—such as social security numbers or credit card details—were affected.
Transak is collaborating with law enforcement and has notified relevant data protection authorities, including the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in the UK and regulators across the EU and US.
The Stormous ransomware group has claimed responsibility for the attack, asserting that they have obtained 300 gigabytes of data from Transak. T
While Transak indicated that there is currently no evidence of data misuse, they advised affected users to remain vigilant and monitor for suspicious activity. The company plans to provide resources and advice to these users to help protect against potential misuse of their information, including identity monitoring services. Also serves as a crucial reminder, every single data leak has potential to cause a $5 wrench attack.
In a related incident last week, Stormous also claimed responsibility for a breach of Fractal ID a decentralized identity system where they allegedly stole 12 gigabytes of data. Fractal ID co-founder Julian Leitloff noted that some of the material being circulated may not be new and emphasized that their systems had been thoroughly checked for breaches without finding any evidence of unauthorized access.
Both Transak and Fractal ID have engaged external cybersecurity firms to investigate their respective breaches comprehensively.
