French crypto tax reporting platform Waltio faces extortion and data breach, affecting nearly 50,000 users

Summary:
The French cryptocurrency tax reporting platform Waltio was targeted by the hacker group “Shiny Hunters,” which claims to have obtained personal data of 50,000 customers and is demanding a ransom. Waltio has reported the incident to the police.

According to PANews on January 23, and reports from Le Parisien, Waltio announced that it was extorted by a hacker group called “Shiny Hunters.” The group claims to have acquired personal data of approximately 50,000 of Waltio’s clients (most of whom are based in France) and is demanding a ransom in exchange.

Waltio is a company that provides portfolio tracking and tax calculation services for cryptocurrency holders. The company stated that it has reported the incident of “attempted extortion and disruption of automated data processing systems” to the police.

The report indicates that the hackers allegedly obtained email addresses and account balance information of relevant clients as early as 2024.