Ledger indicates that each confirmed case involves equipment sold by this Southeast Asian reseller, but critics argue that this hardware wallet manufacturer must be held responsible for its authorized sales channels.
Blockchain analysis firms estimate that attackers stole up to $94.5 million from hundreds of wallets associated with Ledger devices sold through authorized resellers CryptoBilis, although the total amount has not yet been confirmed by Ledger.
Ledger has discovered that at least one of the affected devices contains unauthorized hardware implants; meanwhile, Tether has frozen $10 million related to this theft, and investigators are also continuing to track the flow of funds.
Ledger It is recommended that CryptoBilis customers do not set up devices that are not yet in use, and users who are already using devices are urged to transfer their assets to a new device, while also generating a new recovery phrase.
According to multiple blockchain analysis and intelligence companies, up to $93.2 million in crypto assets have been transferred from wallets associated with the Ledger devices sold by reseller CryptoBilis.
Tether has frozen $10 million related to this theft, and USDT. On Sunday, Ledger stated that the investigation into this theft case, which was first reported three days ago, is still ongoing.
Ledger It has been confirmed that at least one of the affected devices contains unauthorized hardware implants. The company has not stated whether the stolen wallets were also compromised in the same manner, nor have they explained how these devices were tampered with.
Blockchain analysis and intelligence firm Bitquery stated that it traced $93.2 million related to the exploitation of a vulnerability in Ledger. The firm claimed that hackers stole USDT and TRON tokens from 315 wallets across 6 blockchains. Security research platform YFarmX provided a higher figure, stating that attackers transferred $94.5 million from 521 addresses on 7 blockchains. Both estimates are based on public blockchain data, rather than the total confirmed losses of Ledger.
Ledger did not respond immediately to CoinDesk's request for comments regarding the confirmation of the amount stolen and whether they are considering providing compensation plans for affected users.
Bitquery It is confirmed that the freeze of Tether is of great significance, as unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, stablecoin issuers can prevent tokens from being associated with criminal activities. Bitquery also indicates that as of October 11th, approximately $81 million was still traceable on the chain, while some of the funds had already been transferred through Tornado Cash and Zcash.
Tether did not respond immediately to CoinDesk's request for a comment regarding this freeze.
The attempt by Ledger to define this incident as being limited to CryptoBilis was met with opposition, as this reseller is listed as an authorized channel on the Ledger website. User MyCryptoParadise wrote: “This is not an incident of CryptoBilis; it is an incident of Ledger. At the very least, they should take responsibility for this mess.”
This incident is different from a phishing campaign in April. That campaign involved a forged Ledger Live application on Apple App Store. After users entered the recovery phrases, at least $9.5 million was transferred away. This time, it appears that the attackers obtained the keys necessary to directly empty hundreds of wallets.
Ledger It is recommended that CryptoBilis customers not set up devices that have not been used. The company stated that users who have already used the devices should transfer their assets to a new device and generate a new recovery phrase.
