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Coinbase’s recent data breach of $400 million has highlighted the role of low-paid customer service agents from India working for global crypto companies. Reported by Fortune and confirmed by Coinbase on May 15, 2025, the incident highlights that low wages in BPO centers can lead to crimes and social engineering-driven attacks.
Investigations show that hackers targeted customer service agents in Indore, India, who worked for a Texas-based outsourcing firm, TaskUs. TaskUs has provided customer support for Coinbase since 2017. According to recent SEC filings, these agents earned between $500 and $700 a month, far below U.S. minimum wage standards. In comparison, an American worker at the federal minimum wage would earn at least $1,160 a month for full-time shifts.
Forbes noted that while these salaries might seem competitive by Indian standards, they remain low compared to international benchmarks. Sergio Garcia, founder of Tracelon, a crypto investigations firm, described these employees as the “weakest point in the chain.” As a result of the breach, TaskUs reportedly dismissed 226 agents from its Indore center who had worked on Coinbase accounts.
Hackers took advantage by giving bribes to underpaid staff. According to reports, social media sites, specifically Telegram and Discord, helped the group known as ‘the Comm’ or ‘Com’ get in touch with these employees. They used the information they had on Coinbase customers to set up broad social engineering scams targeting the platform’s users.
Coinbase called the breach its largest security lapse to date, with losses estimated at up to $400 million. In an effort to catch the culprits, Coinbase offered a $20 million bounty. However, Fortune’s investigation revealed that the hackers were not experienced foreign cybercriminals, but rather a loose network of young, English-speaking individuals.
Economists say that rising wages were the main factor behind the breach. The 1990 fair wage–effort hypothesis by Akerloff and Yellen, as referenced by economic author Peter N. S. Lee, suggests that fair compensation increases worker loyalty and reduces the likelihood of misconduct. The investigation suggests that if TaskUs had paid its employees more, some of the weaknesses that contributed to the incident might have been avoided.
While salary alone does not explain every instance of criminal behavior, the Coinbase data hack has sparked debate on how BPO wage structures can impact global data security. The breach highlights the importance of crypto exchanges and service providers not only assessing technical safeguards but also evaluating the working conditions of staff handling sensitive data.
Experts have stated that as long as wage gaps persist, similar risks could affect exchanges and other financial firms worldwide. The Coinbase case underscores the importance of conducting comprehensive wage reviews and ensuring proper oversight of outsourced work in the rapidly expanding cryptocurrency sector.
