Ledger confirms spy chip implant behind wallet crypto thefts
The gist
Ledger confirmed a hidden implant in wallets sold by reseller CryptoBilis stole users' recovery phrases.
Whoever holds that master key can move funds without the device.
How it unfolded
- Sep 16, 2026Researchers showed an implant in a Ledger X, saying tampered devices were available for nearly half the price of the original hardware.
- Oct 9, 2026Ledger launched an investigation into user reports of cryptocurrency losses and asked CryptoBilis to stop selling and shipping Ledger devices.
- Oct 10, 2026Ledger confirmed hardware tampering on at least one device and its support team confirmed an unauthorized hardware implant inside one affected customer's device.