Helping our users recognize and protect themselves against social media impersonation scams

At Coinbase, we’re working hard to help update the financial system by building trusted products that expand the utility and adoption of crypto. We’re doing this because we believe crypto and blockchain technology have the ability to increase economic freedom and opportunity around the world. Coinbase chose to become a public company in the US because we believe the US would best be served by embracing this fundamental innovation, but we’re also focused on international markets, many of which are moving forward with strategies to become “crypto hubs.” We’re enthusiastic about furthering our mission, and recognize that to achieve this we must earn and uphold trust with our users by implementing robust security controls, safeguarding their accounts, and increasing confidence. That’s why we do our best to invest in the most advanced security and educate users on how to protect themselves from things like social media impersonation scams, since security is a shared responsibility.

Our users are constantly bombarded by external communications in different ecosystems, especially in social media. While most of us use social media to connect with friends and family, bad actors are also present on social platforms - and they can use those platforms to commit fraud or steal sensitive information from users. These bad actors will often use a technique known as "social media impersonation" to target their victims, creating a fake social media profile that uses the name or pictures of someone that you trust. This is because they know that people are more likely to click on a message from someone that they know, rather than a complete stranger.

Attackers will also attempt to impersonate companies, like Coinbase, to trick individuals into disclosing sensitive details like their account passwords or wallet recovery phrases.  By learning how to recognize signs of scammers and impersonators on social media, we want to help you to protect your accounts from these bad actors.

Things to watch out for when engaging with Coinbase social media channels

To help you not fall into the trap, here are some things you should keep in mind while online:

• Check the validity of the social media profile: Make sure the specific page has a verified badge, has a high number of likes or followers, and was not created recently. Remember, just because a profile uses the company's logo and color scheme does not mean it's an official account.

Real Coinbase Support Account  on Twitter

• Watch out for impersonations of Coinbase Support: Scammers may act differently on different social media platforms: on Facebook and Twitter, watch out for impersonations of Coinbase Support pages, and make sure you are using the correct channels: Twitter & Facebook. On LinkedIn, be wary of any message that claims to come from a Coinbase executive or employee.

• You can always double-check where Coinbase is active on social media: If an account is claiming to represent Coinbase but their username isn't listed on this page, it's likely to be fraudulent: https://help.coinbase.com/en/pro/other-topics/other/is-coinbase-present-on-social-media. 

Real Coinbase Support Account on Reddit 

• Always go through help.coinbase.com when you need support: Coinbase Support does not use Google Forms, or any other external form. If you need assistance from our Support team, the only place to open a new ticket is https://help.coinbase.com/en/contact-us. Coinbase Support will never try to collect your personal information by other means, like a Google Form.

Phishing Coinbase Google Form  1

• Never share your 12-word recovery phrase, your password, or 2-step verification codes with anyone: Our support team will never ask for your password, 2-step verification codes, email access or the 12 words recovery phrase linked with your wallet. 

Phishing Coinbase Google Form 2

Protecting yourself and the broader community: what to do if you see this kind of behavior on social media

If you see a social media profile that appears to be impersonating Coinbase or one of our employees, you can take a few easy steps to protect yourself and the crypto community:

• Do not engage or chat with the scammer.

• Report the scammer’s profile/page to the platform where is it located:

• Twitter - Report abusive behavior

• Facebook - Report abusive behavior

• LinkedIn - Report abusive behavior

• Report the impersonation or scam account directly to security@coinbase.com. Please include a link to the suspicious account with your message.

• Report fraudulent Google Forms directly to Google: Report to Google

For the past decade we’ve been leading the way into the crypto economy, and since day one our top priority has been earning your trust. We do everything we can to make sure our 98+ million users are safe and secure, so that you can focus on building your portfolio. Learn more here.