Consumer complaint received 2022-01-06
Company: Coinbase, Inc.
State: MN
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Virtual currency
Issue: Other transaction problem

Complaint:
XXXX - I realized around XXXX on Friday XX/XX/XXXX that I had lost my phone. 

XXXX - {$2000.00} charge shows up on my XXXX account from Coinbase XXXX- I did not think much of it until Tuesday when I checked my checking account and there were three charges, two from XXXX ( {$1600.00} & {$50.00} ) and one from Coinbase ( {$2000.00} ). Upon figuring this out, I checked my accounts in those apps and saw that fraudulent charges were made from my phone which was somehow unlocked ( I am guessing they saw me put my pin in at the bar ). 

You can see in the account activity here or in upload : XXXX XXXX XXXX? XXXX I began case XXXX with CoinBase about my fraud detailing what I explained above. 

They promptly replied with the steps to secure my account which I did. 

XXXX - {$2000.00} returned to my XXXX account - everything appears to be resolved. I still have all of my Ethereum2 in my Coinbase account ~ {$1600.00} at the time ( fluctuates wildly, you can see in the dropbox document my balance ). I really wanted to get my money out of Coinbase at this point, but since I agreed to " stake '' my Ethereum2, I was unable to sell it until Ethereum2 became salable ( my choice, which I obviously regret ). 

XXXX - I recieve an email saying my transfer failed " On XX/XX/2021, you attempted a transfer of {$2000.00} USD. Unfortunately, the transfer failed due to either a lack of funds or a technical problem with the transfer itself. In order to complete your payment, you must either initiate another transfer or use funds from your Coinbase account. Make payment. If you don't take action, in 5 days we will initate an automatic recovery, which could include selling your cryptocurrency holdings on both Coinbase and Coinbase XXXX  '' - I disregard (, y mistake ) as this had already been confirmed as fraud. 

XXXX - Decide to check my Coinbase account, my portfolio is empty ( all my crypto was gone ) and I got a message saying a payment was required it read : " Your recent purchase failed. Until you make a payment, you can not trade or cash out any funds. If you don't make a payment within 5 business days of payment failure, we'll make a payment on your behalf by selling some of your crypto. '' Clearly this had already happened. In addition it says I now owe {$310.00}. 

I promptly open a case with Coinbase support. 

XXXX - I get an email from Coinbase stating : Hi XXXX, Thanks for contacting us. It appears your account is restricted due to reversed transactions with your bank and an outstanding balance owed to Coinbase. We understand that your account may have been compromised and unauthorized activity occurred. Customers are responsible for the security of their devices and passwords, and for any activity that occurs when those devices or passwords are compromised. Please read our security page for more information : XXXX XXXX XXXX We recognize the difficult position this puts you in. However, we can not reimburse or credit you for this outstanding balance owed to Coinbase because once digital currency is purchased or sent off the platform, we are unable to reverse these transactions. 

Please note : For Coinbase to consider restoring the purchasing ability for your Coinbase account in the future, you will first need to first resolve the outstanding balance owed to Coinbase. 

Regards, Coinbase Support ref : XXXX : ref So here we are - of course I would like my funds back, but I realize that is a longshot - even if I can not get my funds back, I would like to protect other consumers from this. Thank you.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation