Dutch court orders Binance to reveal account details in a dating app crypto scam where a woman lost €186,000.
A recent court ruling in The Hague has ordered Binance to disclose the identity of an account holder involved in a dating app scam. The woman, who lost 186,000 euros, had been persuaded by a scammer she met on a dating app to invest in cryptocurrency. The court has also instructed Binance to keep the account frozen while the woman considers her next legal steps.
The scam, known as “pig butchering,” occurs when the fraudster befriends or gains the trust of the victim before stealing their money. In this case, the woman managed to send 186,000 euros across six different cryptocurrency transactions, which gave her the impression that she was participating in a credible marketplace. However, she quickly discovered that it was a scam and reported it to the police in the third week of August.
Crypto Scam Victim Wins Court Order for Binance to Share Account Holder Info
To recover the stolen money, the woman sought the services of the Dutch cyber investigation agency DataExpert. The firm was able to trace a portion of the stolen funds to an account with Binance. After this, the woman requested that Binance suspend the account and reveal the identity of the account owner. Binance agreed to suspend the account temporarily but declined to share the individual’s information without a court warrant.
Binance said in its response that, as a third party, it could not release customer details without the court’s permission. However, the court favored the woman, and the judge noted sufficient evidence to connect the stolen money with the Binance account. The court also stressed that the woman had to turn to legal proceedings; her rights and needs prevailed over the account holder’s right to privacy.
According to the court order, Binance must share the account holder’s full name and address alongside a detailed list of assets within 14 days. The account must remain locked for at least 4 weeks to allow the woman to consider whether to take further legal steps. Binance, however, was not ordered to pay for the woman’s legal costs.
This case highlights the increasing number of crypto scams, especially for people who use dating apps. It also shows the legal issues of staking cryptocurrency in a decentralized world. The expanding popularity of DeFi is likely to open new legal problems in the future.
