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In 2016, the IRS ordered the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase to hand over transaction records of over 14,000 customers. Harper was among them and only learned of the government's records grab after the IRS sent him a warning letter, mistakenly suggesting he'd underreported his cryptocurrency income. He soon discovered the IRS had his transaction logs, wallet addresses, and public keys—allowing the agency to monitor any future transactions he made.
Harper hadn't done anything wrong. He'd simply used a legal platform to buy and sell cryptocurrency. But his digital footprint became visible to the government overnight.
Now he's suing the IRS not just to protect his own privacy, but to force the agency to delete the records it obtained and to establish a broader legal principle: that digital records stored on third-party platforms can be the property of the user who created them. Harper argues that Coinbase's own terms of service make clear that the data belong to him, not the platform, and therefore, the IRS should have been required to get a warrant before accessing the information. The federal government, including the IRS, and local police argue that recognizing ownership would impede surveillance and law enforcement.
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reason.com