Coinbase SPIES for the government by geo-tracking its own users and sharing gathered data with the feds
By Ethan Huff // Jul 06, 2022

To anyone who has used the platform, it is pretty obvious that things are not quite right and that it is probably not a good idea to store your cryptocurrency holdings there. But now there is solid proof that Coinbase really is just a government-run honeypot operation that quietly sells its users' data and information to the highest bidder – in this case, Big Brother.

Brighteon.TV

According to a report from The Intercept, Coinbase has been secretly selling geo-tracking and other user data to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for quite some time now. Such information is then being used to track and surveil cryptocurrency users.

Back in August 2021, Coinbase "sold a single analytics software license to ICE for $29,000," the report explains. One month later, Coinbase sold another $1.36 million worth of software to the federal agency.

These sales, according to a contract outlining the details of them, allow for ICE to access "a variety of forensic features provided through Coinbase Tracer," which is the name of Coinbase's internal intelligence tool.

"The tool allows people to trace transactions through the blockchain," reports Zero Hedge. "Coinbase markets the software primarily for use in corporate compliance and law enforcement."

"It boasts that the tool has the ability to 'investigate illicit activities including money laundering and terrorist financing' and 'connect [cryptocurrency] addresses to real world entities.'"

If you use Coinbase, ICE can now see your every crypto move

The movement of more than a dozen digital currencies is now fully trackable by ICE, thanks to Coinbase selling its users down the river for government cash. ICE also now possesses "historical geo tracking data," though the details of this are somewhat unclear.

Natasha LaBranche, a spokesperson for Coinbase, explained, when asked, that the contract referenced in The Intercept report is part of Coinbase's disclaimer, or fine print, stating:

"Coinbase Tracer sources its information from public sources and does not make use of Coinbase user data."

Coinbase is also willing to sell user data to the Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the latter of which could use it to track down trades and tax them.

"If you are a cyber criminal and you're using crypto, you're going to have a bad day," bragged Coinbase vice president of global intelligence John Kothanek during a congressional hearing from earlier this month about how his platform is a snitching operation working on behalf of the government.

"We are going to track you down and we're going to find that finance and we are going to hopefully help the government seize that crypto."

Keep in mind that the word "criminal" increasingly encompasses just about everything that Americans do these days. If the government criminalizes it, you become a "criminal" the moment you do it.

This may include buying gas-powered yard appliances in California once they become illegal, for instance, or purchasing an unapproved water filter and having it shipped to Iowa.

"I'll bet Coinbase gets a percentage of the crypto seized using their tools," wrote a commenter at Zero Hedge about how this little grift more than likely works.

"One simple rule to understand: If it's digital, it can never be totally secure," responded another.

Another person claiming to have worked on the design and mechanisms of tracking bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies "using the rootkit of opensource" – we cannot verify this, of course – claims that every single crypto transaction "has been tracked for over 12 years by the NSA and U.S. Army Cybercommand."

"Nothing you do on the internet is anonymous," this person added. "Nothing."

More related news can be found at BitRaped.com.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

TheIntercept.com

NaturalNews.com



Take Action:
Support NewsTarget by linking to this article from your website.
Permalink to this article:
Copy
Embed article link:
Copy
Reprinting this article:
Non-commercial use is permitted with credit to NewsTarget.com (including a clickable link).
Please contact us for more information.
Free Email Alerts
Get independent news alerts on natural cures, food lab tests, cannabis medicine, science, robotics, drones, privacy and more.

NewsTarget.com © 2022 All Rights Reserved. All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. NewsTarget.com is not responsible for content written by contributing authors. The information on this site is provided for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for professional advice of any kind. NewsTarget.com assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. Your use of this website indicates your agreement to these terms and those published on this site. All trademarks, registered trademarks and servicemarks mentioned on this site are the property of their respective owners.

This site uses cookies
News Target uses cookies to improve your experience on our site. By using this site, you agree to our privacy policy.
Learn More
Close
Get 100% real, uncensored news delivered straight to your inbox
You can unsubscribe at any time. Your email privacy is completely protected.