IIROC-Registered Canadian Cryptocurrency Exchange Coinsquare Suffers Data Breach

Just one month after becoming the first Canadian crypto trading platform to be registered with the Investment and Industry Regulatory Organization (IIROC) of Canada, Coinsquare suffered a data breach that compromised the personal information of its users.

On November 19th, Coinsquare had to suspend operations temporarily to investigate unusual activity on its platform. However, several days of proactive measures allowed Coinsquare to gradually resume operations.

We will re-enable crypto deposits shortly after the maintenance window, and resume crypto withdrawals immediately thereafter.

— Coinsquare (@Coinsquare) November 22, 2022

In a follow-up email to investors, Coinsquare acknowledged that a customer database containing personal information was likely exposed during the incident and accessed by a third party.

The leaked database contained user personal information such as names, email addresses, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, device IDs, public wallet addresses, transaction history, and account balances. Coinsquare further confirmed that the password was not published, adding:

“Keep in mind that your assets are always kept refrigerated and are not at risk.”

While the exchange has not detected malicious individuals accessing compromised information, official communications suggest changing passwords, enabling two-factor authentication (2FA), and using different credentials for different platforms. We are warning the user to

Coinsquare has not yet responded to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.

Related: Coinsquare becomes the first Canadian crypto exchange to obtain IIROC registration.

Canadian cryptocurrency exchange Bitvo has been able to withdraw its acquisition deal with FTX thanks to a lengthy approval process by local regulators.

The company emphasized that Bitvo’s business has not been affected as it has no material exposure to FTX or its affiliates.