Ledger: New developments—the company is now owned by a Chinese national, and a second wave of phishing is here
1⃣ Official confirmation
Today, Ledger officially confirmed that the affected devices contained “unauthorized hardware implants.” Supply-chain tampering has gone from “suspected” to “confirmed.”
It only said that its own security infrastructure was not compromised. CryptoBilis has suspended all hardware wallet sales and will cooperate to bring these malicious actors to justice.
I feel like they said a lot without actually saying anything—it’s all just pleasantries.
2⃣ Distributor changed hands in March
CryptoBilis changed hands in March this year, and its shareholding records show that a Chinese national has taken over.
The new owner is registered under the name Jiaming, with a registered address in Heilongjiang. They have held 100% of CryptoBilis’ shares since August 3.
New owner in March, disaster in October. The devices sold during those seven months were probably all “tampered with.”
Given what we know now, it’s hard not to suspect that acquiring the company was the first step in stealing crypto.
3⃣ The second wave of phishing is here
A fake Ledger website has topped Google’s search results, with over a million visits in 30 days.
The scammers have made precise use of the traffic, too. People searching for “Ledger official website” right now are being specifically targeted.
Next, we’ll see whether Ledger releases its investigation findings or provides updates on the funds—and whether it will reimburse users if they can’t be recovered.
Crypto has a long history of theft. Sometimes, the tools themselves become vehicles for wrongdoing—neither anti-detect browsers nor hardware wallets are immune.
Think about it the other way around: how much profit is there in making a product, compared with a single targeted heist that can bring in a fortune? Why wouldn’t someone do it?
If Ledger can’t handle this properly, it won’t just be the end of Ledger. Hardware wallets as a whole may end up being seen as a waste of money.
1⃣ Official confirmation
Today, Ledger officially confirmed that the affected devices contained “unauthorized hardware implants.” Supply-chain tampering has gone from “suspected” to “confirmed.”
It only said that its own security infrastructure was not compromised. CryptoBilis has suspended all hardware wallet sales and will cooperate to bring these malicious actors to justice.
I feel like they said a lot without actually saying anything—it’s all just pleasantries.
2⃣ Distributor changed hands in March
CryptoBilis changed hands in March this year, and its shareholding records show that a Chinese national has taken over.
The new owner is registered under the name Jiaming, with a registered address in Heilongjiang. They have held 100% of CryptoBilis’ shares since August 3.
New owner in March, disaster in October. The devices sold during those seven months were probably all “tampered with.”
Given what we know now, it’s hard not to suspect that acquiring the company was the first step in stealing crypto.
3⃣ The second wave of phishing is here
A fake Ledger website has topped Google’s search results, with over a million visits in 30 days.
The scammers have made precise use of the traffic, too. People searching for “Ledger official website” right now are being specifically targeted.
Next, we’ll see whether Ledger releases its investigation findings or provides updates on the funds—and whether it will reimburse users if they can’t be recovered.
Crypto has a long history of theft. Sometimes, the tools themselves become vehicles for wrongdoing—neither anti-detect browsers nor hardware wallets are immune.
Think about it the other way around: how much profit is there in making a product, compared with a single targeted heist that can bring in a fortune? Why wouldn’t someone do it?
If Ledger can’t handle this properly, it won’t just be the end of Ledger. Hardware wallets as a whole may end up being seen as a waste of money.