MultiChoice’s digital security subsidiary, Irdeto, has announced a partnership with Coinbase, the top cryptocurrency platform in the United States.
Irdeto said the partnership marked a significant milestone in the evolution of its cyber services, particularly its payment disruption capabilities.
It said the partnership will enable early identification and intervention against cybercriminals that use cryptocurrency as a tool for piracy and other illegal activities.
The new cooperation focuses on the investigation and disruption of individuals identified as abusing the Coinbase platform to facilitate copyright and trademark infringements.
Irdeto said its intelligence-led investigations, carried out on behalf of its customers, have uncovered a growing use of cryptocurrency by threat actors across both the video entertainment and gaming ecosystems.
Its latest data highlights a concerning trend — the use of cryptocurrency by illicit service providers climbed from 13% in 2022 to 17% in 2023, and surged to 19% by the end of 2024.
Through this collaboration, Irdeto shares detailed investigative reports with Coinbase, helping to remove bad actors from the platform.
This disrupts the criminals’ ability to receive payments for illegal services and halts their progression into more serious forms of cybercrime.
“Our partnership with Coinbase enhances our Payment Disruption service, empowering us to remove financial lifelines from pirates and cheat developers before they can scale their operations,” said Mark Mulready, vice president of cyber services at Irdeto.
“This is a powerful example of how strategic industry collaboration can disrupt criminal infrastructure and protect the digital ecosystem.”
Irdeto said the partnership also seeks to continue an expansion of Irdeto’s scope for investigations that increasingly have elements of cryptocurrency as payments for services or allow criminal gangs to launder their profits.
Beyond payment disruption, Irdeto’s Cyber Services team supports clients in reporting to law enforcement, helping to identify the owners behind cryptocurrency addresses.
This collaboration enables authorities to advance investigations, apprehend offenders, build prosecution cases and support the seizure and recovery of illicit crypto assets.
“At Coinbase, we’re committed to ensuring our platform is the world’s most trusted crypto exchange, due to our longstanding commitment to consumer protection, security and global regulatory compliance,” said VP of global intelligence at Coinbase, John Kothanek.
“Partnering with Irdeto allows us to act swiftly on high-quality intelligence, disrupt malicious actors at an early stage and reinforce trust in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
Irdeto said its collaboration with Coinbase is part of a broader initiative to work closely with digital transaction providers and law enforcement agencies worldwide.
The company said it was actively signing additional partnerships with similar organisations, expanding its capacity to track cryptocurrency usage in illicit markets and remove critical financial enablers.
“At Irdeto, we are committed to not only detecting threats but actively dismantling the infrastructure that supports them,” added Mulready.
“Our Payment Disruption service, enhanced through partnerships like this one with Coinbase, provides a unique and powerful solution to combat cybercrime across industries.”