Zondacrypto Customer Data Pushed on Darknet After Halt

Customer records from Zondacrypto are being offered for sale on the darknet after the Poland-based exchange stopped processing withdrawals earlier this month, citing liquidity problems. The platform’s website has been offline for days and users report difficulty logging into accounts.

Two data packages are reported to be on sale. A smaller bundle, priced at about €550, reportedly contains email addresses and basic identity details. A larger package, offered at around 0.6 BTC, is said to include scanned ID documents, verification selfies, login histories and wallet addresses. A Polish developer posted on social media that a contact in cybersecurity told him Zonda’s customer database had appeared on the darknet.

Security specialists say files that include scanned IDs and verification selfies can be used to impersonate customers to open bank accounts, apply for loans or sign contracts. Advisers recommend affected users change passwords for any accounts that shared credentials with the exchange, enable two-factor authentication and beware of unsolicited offers to recover funds. Polish users were advised to block their PESEL national ID number through the mObywatel app to limit misuse. Customers can apply for state compensation in Poland and in Estonia.

The problems at Zondacrypto followed an analysis indicating the exchange had lost almost all of its reserves. CEO Przemyslaw Kral acknowledged the company did not have access to a wallet holding about 4,500 BTC, worth more than $330 million, and blamed founder Sylwester Suszek for not handing over the private key before Suszek went missing in 2022. Kral rejected claims the platform was insolvent.

Law enforcement officials estimate about 30,000 people may be affected, with investor losses exceeding 350 million zloty (about $95 million). Zondacrypto operates under an Estonian license. Regulators and police are investigating the breach and the exchange’s financial shortfall, and the case has intensified debate in Poland over cryptocurrency regulation, where the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets rules have not yet been implemented.