Hardware backdoors embedded in Ledger crypto wallets resulted in the theft of an estimated $102 million from hundreds of account holders. While initially found in wallets sold by unauthorized online vendors, compromised devices have now been discovered in legitimate retail chains and authorized regional resellers like CryptoBilis in Malaysia and MediaMarkt in Europe. Discovered implants—originally brought to light by hardware hacker Joe Grand and later studied by researcher Mark Karpelès—capture seed phrases as they appear on the screen and transmit them via covert LTE modules and custom-built antennas. The physical implants have evolved significantly, moving from crude hand-soldered wiring to highly sophisticated, custom flexible circuits painted to blend seamlessly into authentic boards. Ledger has asked the affected authorized distributor to halt sales while denying any breach of its own internal security systems, suggesting the problem stems from compromised reseller inventories or return stock.

Full report : The theft of an estimated $100 million in crypto using hardware backdoors planted in Ledger wallets points to a sophisticated, systematic attack subverting devices sold by legitimate resellers in Asia and Europe.