Hi all. I need some explanation on the risk of KYC.
I’m sure we’ve all seen the recent kidnappings in France due to governments leaking KYC data showing purchases etc. obviously is exchanges like Coinbase and finance face the same data leaks, it put you at risk for a wrench attack because they have your physical location.
My question is, how do the attackers even know you have access to the wallets you withdrew to?
Let’s say I purchase 100BTC on Coinbase and withdraw to cold storage. How do the attackers even know I have access to that cold storage wallet? Seems like a gamble? I could’ve also sent it to the wrong address.
Also, if I go Coinbase -> Cold storage -> new wallet -> new wallet how would they know? Especially if the public key hasn’t been exposed showing all wallet addresses for the final wallet it resides in
https://www.coindesk.com/business/2026/04/19/inside-the-rise-of-wrench-attacks-against-crypto-holders-and-how-france-has-become-the-focus
Posted by UnorthodoxShot
4 Comments
They usually don’t know with certainty. It’s more about leaked KYC data patterns and assumptions than exact tracking.
Well, the wrench will reveal all.
If you live in a city which is too permissive on property crimes so you can break any car window with very low risk of consequences, why not bust every window just to flip down the back seat and look in the trunk?
I think a wrench attack is similar but can be more targeted. 1) you know from the kyc leaks/records this person has crypto (or maybe even a lot of crypto because of the leak
2) you don’t know if they still have it but if you see them advertising a crypto fueled lifestyle or a lifestyle that exceeds what their know day job can provide, how much does a wrench attack really cost you?
Why not find out?
People with BTC stickers in the lambos and other shit like that are nuts to me. Yeah, great. Everyone knows now that you had enough magic internet money to buy this unnecessary luxury. Yours just advertising that you might have more…
Rule #1: Don’t use Conbase or any exchange, asking for KYC. BISQ, Robosats, HodlHodl, PeachBitcoin or Vexl will NEVER leak your details because they never had them in the first place.