How Binance STOLE my BTC, a WARNING to Others

[o_e_l_e_o]

Unfortunately, that suspicion could easily arise from as simple a case as a change of IP address

They need to stop advertising their "2 BTC a day" unverified account withdrawals then, as it is essentially false advertising. If something as simple as an IP address change can trigger their automatic "suspicions", then considering anybody can be assigned a new IP address at any time by their ISP, or the same user will have two completely different IP address if they access their account on WiFi or on mobile, then essentially any and every "unverified" account can be flagged for mandatory KYC at any time. Their whole "2 BTC for unverified accounts" is a lie when they can simply force you to verify anytime they like, and steal your coins if you don't.

OP isn't the first to be in this situation, and he won't be the last. Binance also aren't the first exchange to pull this scam, and also won't be the last. It's a shame that people never heed the warnings of others though. It usually takes someone to suffer a loss of their own coins before they realize just how scammy all the big centralized exchanges are. Even people who are verified and think "This would never happen to me" can and often do suddenly wake up to find that their chosen exchange has shut down their account because of some unspecified reason, they don't like where your coins come from or where they go, they don't like your activity, they want more info, they've banned your country, etc., etc.

[RapTarX]

I agree what you said. They must have either remove daily 2 BTC withdraw advertising or allow any user to do so. But they also have their terms and conditions. I know this is common issue regarding almost all the centralize exchanges. But this is the thought from our side.
If they find anything suspicious, they have the right to ask KYC even if user have lower amount of withdrawal than 2 BTC. We don't know the origin of the BTC nor we know anything about OP's side. It's possible that OP's BTC was not legal (just saying). In that case, don't Binance have the right to call for KYC? We don't know anything from exchange view.
Changing IP is not a suspicious activity all the time if it gets changed only a few times. Since OP has probably logged in from an IP which might be used by other as well before OP, I guess it's possible. In that case, if it's true, Binance must call OP for KYC since one person can use only one active account.

[examplens]

I don't want to defend Binance here, but I would look at the wide picture. It happened to me several times that accidentally try to log in on Binance through VPN, I did not have any problem after email and 2FA confirmation.
The only difference which I see here is OP use trading bot there, and maybe they can check his functionality. I would not rule out the possibility that is a bot turned his attention to unusual activities. which resulted in additional security checks.

[o_e_l_e_o]

If they find anything suspicious, they have the right to ask KYC even if user have lower amount of withdrawal than 2 BTC.

Sure, they have the right to ask for KYC. But they do not have the right to hold your coins hostage and demand you provide it. If you refuse to provide KYC, then your coins should be returned to the address they were deposited from.

We don't know the origin of the BTC nor we know anything about OP's side. It's possible that OP's BTC was not legal (just saying).

I don't think it should matter. Exchanges shouldn't even be looking in to where OP's money came from, let alone restricting his account because of it. They shouldn't be policing the crypto world.

In that case, if it's true, Binance must call OP for KYC since one person can use only one active account.

Binance should be requiring KYC on all accounts and not letting anyone deposit before they have completed KYC. Allowing deposits but not withdrawals is scammy.

[LeGaulois]

At least with banks, you can go to the agency and make a scandal until they release the funds, or contact a consumer association, and use justice.
Even if they decide to close an account they're forced to give back the funds

Currently, @OP is surely singing

[Darker45]

Unfortunately, that suspicion could easily arise from as simple a case as a change of IP address

~snip~

It sucks, really! All these terms and conditions that are totally opposite to the very philosophy of Bitcoin. It seems these large crypto institutions themselves are the ones tearing down the very fundamental features of Bitcoin.  

Yes, this won't be the last case. That's for sure. Neither will Binance be the last of this kind of scammy site. Gambling sites come to mind first, marketing their non-KYC feature all around but ask players for it all of a sudden.

If they find anything suspicious, they have the right to ask KYC even if user have lower amount of withdrawal than 2 BTC.

If you refuse to provide KYC, then your coins should be returned to the address they were deposited from.

1. Unfortunately, the terms of use of Binance stipulates that:^[1]

With registration of an account on Binance, you agree to share personal information requested for the purposes of identity verification.

This is of course a bit vague as a user might think that he/she could totally avoid this if he/she stays within the 2-BTC non-KYC limit. But then it appears to be a blanket condition to all accounts. And that particular request from Binance may unexpectedly arrive at your email inbox anytime.  

2. Returning the coins to the address they came from might not solve the problem. As a matter of fact, it might make it a little more complicated because that transaction might actually be a totally different one. For example, I sometimes give my Binance BTC address to some of my random BTC borrowers.

[1] https://www.binance.com/en/terms

[o_e_l_e_o]

Unfortunately, the terms of use of Binance stipulates that:

I'm well aware of what their terms state. I'm not arguing that Binance shouldn't be allowed to ask for KYC - they are a centralized exchange and can place any demands they like in their Terms of Service. When you sign up to them, you accept those terms and at their mercy. What I'm arguing is that it is unethical and borderline scammy for Binance to continue to advertise their "2 BTC a day" unverified accounts when they clearly have no intention of fulfilling that promise in a significant number of cases.

A good analogy would be all the "free VPNs" that you see going around. Their Terms clearly state that they will collect all your data and sell it to third parties, ad companies, Google, etc., but their websites are covered with false claims of "enhancing your privacy" and "no logs". It's false advertising, and it's unethical.

[binance-stole-funds]

Good News!  I was able to finally recover my funds.  It took almost 1 month!

I had to provide a video of my wallet showing the history of my first deposit I ever made to the exchange, which was about 6 months ago. 

Luckily I still had that wallet on my computer.

I usually use a fresh address for every BTC transaction, I think this contributed to their security flag aside from the IP change.

Thanks to the forum for giving individuals a platform to voice such concerns and its users for making it relevant.