Hackers breach Zendesk to extort Discord with stolen IDs

Zendesk, the customer service firm popular with crypto trading companies, was hacked this week and the attackers are using stolen personal data to bribe the messaging platform Discord.

Discord revealed last Friday that users interacting with its support or trust and safety teams may have been impacted by a breach targeting its third-party customer service provider.

It claimed that hackers gained access to “a small number of government‑ID images (e.g., driver’s license, passport) from users who had appealed an age determination,” and may have accessed other personal data, from contact details to billing information. 

Security researcher VX Underground reported on Saturday that Zendesk was the compromised third party. Now, it says that the hackers obtained over 2 million age verification-related photos and are extorting Discord with the photos as leverage. 

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The breach reportedly happened on September 20, 10 days before Discord implemented a new arbitration agreement that automatically enrolls users unless they opt out by October 30.

Discord has already begun the process of notifying users affected by the breach and is actively working with law enforcement to investigate.

Zendesk is popular in crypto

Zendesk is a customer support firm that utilizes AI agents in its service with large clients such as Uber, Squarespace, and Shopify.

It’s also partnered with crypto exchanges BtcTurk, Coinjar, HTX, and Rain, stablecoin TrueUSD, payments firm Mercuryo, analytics giant Arkham, and infrastructure provider Prometheum.

Rain was hacked for over $14 million in crypto in April last year, and BtcTurk suspended its withdrawals this August after losing $49 million to hackers. It previously lost $55 million in 2024 from another attack.

Leaked data is often used to target users with phishing scams, while government IDs can provide criminals with a means to bypass know-your-customer checks without having to use their own ID. 

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