Ledger Halts Wallet Sales After $86M Hack Claims

Ledger has temporarily stopped all hardware wallet sales through CryptoBilis, a major reseller in Southeast Asia. This decision comes as the team looks into serious reports that several buyers lost millions in crypto after using these devices.

What Triggered the Sales Pause?

The investigation started shortly after an on-chain analyst named Specter publicly flagged a massive loss. Specter claimed that compromised hardware wallets led to over $86 million being drained from affected users.

While Ledger acted quickly by contacting the reseller, the manufacturer has not yet verified the $86 million total. Ledger also has not officially confirmed whether physical devices were altered before reaching customers.

Who is CryptoBilis and What Should Buyers Do?

A hardware wallet is a small device that keeps your private crypto keys offline, away from internet hackers. Ledger is one of the most widely used manufacturers in the crypto world.

CryptoBilis is an official regional seller based in Malaysia. Founded in 2020, the shop sells crypto merchandise and Ledger devices across Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Ledger Support issued urgent guidance for anyone who bought a device from CryptoBilis within the last 90 days. Here is what they recommend:

• Do not set up the device if you have not opened or initialized it yet.
• Transfer your funds immediately to a new device using a new 24-word seed phrase if you already set it up.

As a precaution, and pending the results of our investigation, we have asked CryptoBilis to pause all sales and shipments of Ledger devices.

Unpacking the $86 Million Drain Claim

How did analyst Specter estimate such a high loss figure? Specter tracked blockchain transactions tied to hundreds of victim wallets on EthereumETH+0.27%, TRONTRX-0.71%, and Bitcoin.

Public data on Mempool supports part of this research. It shows three Bitcoin addresses listed by Specter holding roughly 211 BTCBTC+1.26% combined. As of 13:44 UTC on Friday, none of those funds had moved.

However, Ledger has not endorsed this loss estimate and is still investigating how funds left the affected wallets.

Hardware Wallet Risks and Supply Chain Security

Hardware wallets offer strong security, but buying outside official stores carries supply chain risks if products get intercepted or tampered with before delivery.

This is not the first hardware security scare in recent months:

• April Fake Units: Security researchers found fake Ledger units on a Chinese marketplace designed to secretly send PINs and recovery seed phrases directly to attackers.
• August Coldcard Bug: Competitor hardware wallet maker Coldcard suffered a firmware bug drain that cost Bitcoin holders around $70 million.

Managing digital assets requires constant attention to physical and software security. Past security performance of hardware wallet devices does not guarantee protection against future attack vectors.

What Happens Next?

For now, the big question of whether CryptoBilis devices were altered before reaching buyers remains unanswered. Ledger stated it will share official updates as its investigation continues.

If you suspect your hardware wallet is unsecure, never enter your seed phrase online. Move your crypto assets to a safe, newly generated backup wallet right away.