Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao have dismissed claims that a database containing 335.9 million user records was stolen and offered for sale. The exchange’s customer support team said reviewed samples did not confirm a breach of Binance systems and that the listing appeared to be an attempted scam.
The alleged seller, operating under the name ShinyHunters, claimed to have compromised records across approximately 170 countries. ThreatMon described the advertised dataset as including identity cards, passports, email addresses, phone numbers, account passwords, transaction histories, internal infrastructure details, private wallet keys, and information concerning Binance hot wallets. The asking price was reported at $900,000 in Bitcoin or Monero.
Binance said the allegations contradicted its data retention practices. The company stated that it does not store user passwords in plain text and does not hold private keys for customers' external wallets. The exchange also noted that the listing referred to regions where Binance no longer operates. It suggested that similar past advertisements involved information collected by infostealer malware from individual devices rather than records taken from exchange systems.
Changpeng Zhao responded on X, calling the claim "obviously fake/scam." He argued that anyone possessing usable private keys would move the cryptocurrency instead of trying to sell the information. He also criticized media coverage, writing: "Saw it yesterday, thought it was obvious, but still many media went with it for the headlines."
Security firm Brandefense documented multiple similar advertisements dated between Oct. 30 and Nov. 2, with asking prices ranging from $500,000 to $900,000. The firm said the mixed contents and private-key offer were more consistent with recycled information or a scam, and it had not opened or tested a sample as of Nov. 3.
Binance said its investigation is ongoing and that current findings do not indicate a data leak to systems, authentication data, or account information linked to the announcement.
