Ledger Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Researcher Says Hardware Wallet Warning Came Months Earlier

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure TL;DR: Security researcher Joe Grand says he warned Ledger about signs of physically modified devices months before a wider hardware-wallet supply-chain attack came to light. The dispute concerns communications and product distribution, not proof that Ledger’s core cryptography was defeated. Ledger is facing questions about how it handled earlier warnings after reports of cryptocurrency thefts involving physically altered hardware wallets. Security researcher Joe Grand says he contacted the company in March after inspecting a suspicious Ledger Nano X obtained through an online marketplace in Thailand. The device reportedly contained unauthorized components that could interfere with sensitive wallet operations. An Earlier Warning Former Mt. Gox chief executive Mark Karpelès has also publicly questioned Ledger’s response, pointing to concerns about tampered devices raised before the larger incident became widely known. The reports have drawn renewed attention because some affected wallets were distributed through third-party sales channels rather than bought directly from the manufactu...