Description

The incident began when I encountered an issue with my Coinbase account in late [insert approximate date, e.g., October 2025]. I was having difficulty accessing my account and believed my funds were temporarily locked or that there was an issue verifying my identity. Wanting to resolve the issue quickly, I searched online for “Coinbase customer support” and found several results that appeared legitimate. Among them was a website titled Support Crypt, with the URL supportcrypt.store. The site featured Coinbase’s logo, branding colors, and professional design elements that mimicked Coinbase’s official website. At first glance, it appeared authentic and trustworthy. On the homepage, the site prominently displayed a phone number — 888-439-1899 — under a header that read “Coinbase Support Helpline.” Believing this to be the genuine support line, I called the number for assistance. This statement details a fraudulent incident in which I was deceived by an individual or group impersonating Coinbase customer support. Through a combination of social engineering, professional-looking online assets, and direct communication, the perpetrator gained unauthorized access to my cryptocurrency wallet and stole approximately $50,000 USD. The fraudulent operation involved a fake website — https://supportcrypt.store/ — and a phone number, 888-439-1899, which were both presented as official Coinbase support channels. The person who answered the phone introduced himself as a “Coinbase Security Agent.” He sounded professional, calm, and knowledgeable about cryptocurrency procedures. He confirmed my name and email address, both of which I provided, and asked a series of questions regarding my Coinbase account activity. He said he could see a “security alert” on my account and claimed that my wallet had been “compromised by suspicious activity.” He stated that, to “secure the funds,” I needed to “migrate” my crypto assets to a “temporary secure wallet” until the issue was resolved. This explanation seemed plausible at the time because he used convincing technical language and referenced standard Coinbase security terms. He even sent an email from what appeared to be a legitimate Coinbase address (spoofed, I now realize) that included Coinbase’s logo, color scheme, and privacy disclaimer. The caller instructed me to follow specific steps on my computer and mobile device. He guided me to install a “secure verification” tool that was supposedly meant to confirm my wallet ownership. In reality, this was a remote-access or wallet-draining application designed to extract my private keys or grant him direct access to my funds. Under his direction, I connected my crypto wallet, believing I was authorizing a temporary transfer to a safe holding account. He reassured me multiple times that this was a “standard security protocol” and that my funds would be restored within 24 to 48 hours once the investigation was complete. I followed his instructions and approved what I thought was a security transfer. Within minutes, approximately $50,000 worth of cryptocurrency — primarily Bitcoin and Ethereum — was removed from my wallet. The transaction IDs were visible, but when I checked the destination addresses on the blockchain, they were unfamiliar and not associated with Coinbase. When I tried to call the supposed support line back, the number was disconnected, and the website supportcrypt.store became inaccessible a short time later. This incident was a painful but important lesson about online security and the dangers of impersonation scams. I hope this statement will help in any investigations or public awareness efforts aimed at stopping similar fraud operations. The website supportcrypt.store and phone number 888-439-1899 were used in this specific scam, and I strongly urge relevant authorities and hosting providers to investigate and take them offline permanently. Despite the loss, I remain committed to cooperating fully with Coinbase, law enforcement, and cybercrime investigators to trace any possible leads related to the stolen funds. I sincerely hope that my experience serves as a cautionary example for others in the cryptocurrency community.