A criminal who ran a so-called task scam has reportedly become one of the largest known victims of tampered Ledger hardware wallets, according to analysis attributed to Chainalysis in wire coverage reviewed by FXMARE. The amount lost was put at $4.8 million in bitcoin, a sum that some headlines rounded to almost $5 million.
The funds, based on the reporting, were proceeds of a scheme in which people were recruited for supposed online work. Participants were paid to simulate product sales and write reviews, tasks meant to look like ordinary e-commerce activity. Once they were engaged, the operators demanded deposits from them before releasing the pay they were owed. Money collected this way is what appears to have ended up in the compromised wallets.
Coverage describes the devices as having been affected by a spy-chip exploit, meaning the hardware had been altered so that the holder's coins could be taken. The reporting frames the episode as an irony: the person who defrauded others through fake jobs was in turn defrauded through wallets that were supposed to provide secure storage. The sources reviewed do not detail how the scammer obtained the devices or how the tampering was carried out, and FXMARE does not speculate on those points.
Separately, Ledger is promoting a new product at a time when the integrity of its existing wallets is under scrutiny. Reporting says the company has opened reservations for a device priced at $849. It is described as a data-only device that combines everyday applications with hardware-based approvals, with delivery targeted for 2027. The timing places the product launch alongside news that criminals have compromised existing wallets, which coverage notes bears on how Ledger seeks to win customer trust.
The case illustrates a broader point about hardware wallets: their security depends on the device being genuine and unmodified when it reaches the user. Chainalysis' tracing of the stolen bitcoin is what linked the loss to the task-scam proceeds, according to the reports. The sources do not say whether the stolen funds have been recovered, whether any arrests have been made, or how many other wallets were affected, so those questions remain unanswered in the material available.