Fake Ledger physicial upgrade scam

[Cookdata]

Sometimes back in 2024, Ledger experienced a data breach. It was reported that about 270,000 users data was stolen, including their phone numbers, email and physical mail addresses, and now scammers are using that information to start another war of physical scams through their mailboxes.

What do they do? They sent mail to Ledger customers from the leaked information to their mailboxes for them to update/upgrade their seed phrase, and failure to do so, their services will be terminated and they won't be able to access their wallet.

One X user reported yesterday that he received a mail from a fake Ledger company to update his seed phrase with the Ledger logo as letter head and a well-composed, organised mail. The details include a QR code that asked the user to scan and update his seed phrase; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to access his wallet and funds.



Source: https://x.com/JacobCanfield/status/1916977850344694024

The details of the mail letter.

There are so several data leaks of users information from the Ledger company that I don't doubt their incompetency. Stay safe, as no company that offers hardware wallet safe services will send you such mail to your house; no one will ask you for any update or upgrade. It's just scammers getting upgraded in their skills.

[Charles-Tim]

It's just scammers getting upgraded in their skills.

This has been a common scam since some years ago. It is a common phishing scam that is not limited to only Ledger Nano users. Even on this forum, we have reported many topics about a site that you will click on the link provided by the OP all to know that the site will ask for seed phrase.

Wallet users should know what seed phrase is and the reason it should not be disclosed to another person but just the person that owns it should know it and have it with him.

[KiaKia]

Lack of crypto knowledge have cost people a lot of money, even as a beginner you just have to read the rules of handling a crypto wallet and you are good to go, what good will ever come out from someone telling you to upgrade your seed phrase? How is this even possible? It makes zero sense.

I am not just surprised as there are too many people in crypto space that shouldn't be here in the first place, they lack a lot and they are not willing to learn or listen to advice, it's the same way they choose to leave their assets on centralised exchanges willingly.

Seed phrases or private keys needs no upgrade, it can't be upgraded, it's your keys to your cribs, you cant upgrade the key to your door without changing the whole mechanism.

If anyone has your key they will open your door without you knowing, they can also make duplicate, that's because they have the original.

[bitcoinqueen11]

Yeah, this one is real. Scammers are sending letters to people affected by the old Ledger data breach, acting like it's an official message from Ledger. The letter looks clean, has the logo, and even a QR code asking you to "verify" your seed phrase or risk losing access.

But here's the thing. No legit wallet company will ever ask for your seed phrase. Not online, not by mail, not in any way. If someone’s asking for it, it’s 100% a scam.

If you get one of these, toss it. If your info was in that breach and you're feeling uneasy, you could move your funds to a new wallet with a fresh seed. Also, for future orders, consider using a PO box or privacy-focused shipping option to avoid getting hit with stuff like this again.

[God Of Thunder]

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This scam attempt is the same as sending an email to the victims. But I feel like the physical one is most dangerous. Most people won't expect physical scam mails, and they may end up trusting these scammers and fall for these phishing scams. When scammers send emails from a virtual mail address, some of them get flagged as spam and people don't even check those emails. Sometimes people post those email online and ask if it is true. But when the scammers send you a paper mail via your mailing address, most people will believe it is came from Ledger's official because there is no way scammers know their address. This is unfortunate, but we have to deal with it.

[Charles-Tim]

Most people won't expect physical scam emails, and they may end up trusting these scammers and fall for these phishing scams.

Email means electronic mail. It is different from mails which is what you are referring to and what that is discussed on this thread.

It is a common scam but just that this one is physical. Still if you understand the email, you will know that you should avoid the letter sent.

If I see the letter, I will know that it is a scam. It is more fake because I know Ledger can not send letters because they would prefer email. Also asking for seed phrase is completely what makes it a scam.

The problem there is that knowing the house of the victims is dangerous even to physical attack.

[tbct_mt2]

It has happened many times with Ledger hardware wallet.
https://thecharlatan.ch/List-Of-Hardware-Wallet-Hacks/

This scam is a very common scam type and it is written in Cryptocurr3ncy scam book. Be careful with wallet download, install and verification befkre using are recommended practice for better security and avoid Bitcoin loss.

Hardware wallets must be bought and use rightly.

Checking online with information on Ledger website after receiving the email letter will keep email receivers safe.

[God Of Thunder]

Email means electronic mail. It is different from mails which is what you are referring to and what that is discussed on this thread.

Yeah, I know that, but I messed up while writing it. I messed up between mail and email. 

It is a common scam but just that this one is physical. Still if you understand the email, you will know that you should avoid the letter sent.

If I see the letter, I will know that it is a scam. It is more fake because I know Ledger can not send letters because they would prefer email. Also asking for seed phrase is completely what makes it a scam.

Yeah, people who are involved in online forums are familiar with these scam attempts. But, most of the average people don't know that something like this can happen. People do not expect their physical address to be leaked from somewhere and they don't expect mails from the scammers physically.

[albon]

This is scary.

Imagine your address and personal data being in the hands of scammers, resulting in phishing emails that may come in the form of physical letters, making the scam more professional than regular emails.

If I were the recipient of such a physical letter that I found in my mailbox, I would have reported it to the police so they could track down the perpetrators and stop them from deceiving more people who might scan the QR code and fall victim to the scammer's phishing trap, potentially losing their assets forever.

With such advanced types of scams, a person should not rush if he sense something suspicious is going on. He should contact the hardware wallet’s support or ask the crypto community, and they’ll surely get the correct answer.

[Publictalk792]

This is really worrying and sadly not surprising after Ledger data problem in 2024. When data gets stolen problems can last for long time. Fact is that bad guys are now using stolen info to send fake letters to Ledger customers is sneaky trick. It is understandable why you do not trust Ledger much after all the data leaks. This new scam makes trust even worse and shows how important it is for companies that deal with sensitive info especially in crypto world to have really good security.
Your advice is super important real company that keeps your crypto safe will never ask you to update your secret words especially not through letter in mail. You should always keep your secret words offline and never tell anyone. This situation is big warning to everyone who uses cryptocurrency to be careful and not trust any unexpected messages online or in mail that ask for your private wallet information. You really need to stay safe because these scammers are getting better at what they do.

[Coyster]

Ledger customers have been endlessly attacked through phishing, but this is the first time i am reading about scammers sending letters to people's physical mailboxes. I am guessing the only information available to this scammers is people's physical mailboxes, because if they had their email address, they would have just sent an email, and i think that is even more believable. Who would believe that their hardware wallet manufacturer would just randomly send them a letter, when they can quickly communicate online.

[tabas]

I am afraid that with the number of customers that Ledger has, there is a big chance that there will be a number of people who will fall for this scam. I hope that most, if not all, customers who have purchased their hardware wallet have already learned that there is no need for such QR codes to upgrade the security of their hardware wallets. And if there is an update that they need to do, it should come from the Ledger Live that's being used to access these HWs that they've bought. These scammers and hackers are clever in this kind of tactic. The amount of work and effort they've exerted to send email to these potential victims sure is a lot.

[promise444c5]

But isn't this dangerous in the first place? I know the address would have been provided for shipping and delivery. If they know their physical address to send  these physical mails, then they could attack them anytime they want, knowing that they would get something. The only thing stopping them is that they don’t know if it’s going to worth it.

I think people need to stop using their home addresses for things like this.

[dkbit98]

One X user reported yesterday that he received a mail from a fake Ledger company to update his seed phrase with the Ledger logo as letter head and a well-composed, organised mail. The details include a QR code that asked the user to scan and update his seed phrase; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to access his wallet and funds.

I am not surprised hearing about this, and I am sure there are many others with similar stories that never got posted online and got publicity.
As a result of poor ledger security customer personal information is available for years and scammers are going to use that periodically.
It's easier to change phone numbers (that also got leaked), but changing home address is not that easy.
This is one of the reasons why I don't like creating a bunch of accounts with my personal details.   

[sokani]

But isn't this dangerous in the first place? I know the address would have been provided for shipping and delivery. If they know their physical address to send  these physical mails, then they could attack them anytime they want, knowing that they would get something. The only thing stopping them is that they don’t know if it’s going to worth it.

I think people need to stop using their home addresses for things like this.

People have this generally believe that anyone using a hardware device to store crypto must be a substantial amount and that's why scammers target such data because of what they can do with it.

So as much as you need to fill in your details when making a purchase, it's not advisable to provide your real information. Use a decoy mailing address, secondary phone number and a newly created email for the purchase instead. If paraventure there's a data breach, it won't have any harm on you.

[sheenshane]

That's why Ledger has this post as a reminder.

Always remember: Ledger will never call, DM, or ask for your 24-word recovery phrase. If someone does, it's a scam. Stay cautious and keep your crypto safe.

They never send DM, so if you receive one from your email or especially in your spam box, it might be suspicious that you are being targeted by a scammer.

I didn't have Ledger, so I didn't experience this.
My question is, if your email has been compromised by a scammer, is there a chance that you will change it?

[_act_]

My question is, if your email has been compromised by a scammer, is there a chance that you will change it?

This is more than your emails has been compromised because the house addresses of the Ledger users were also compromised. This scam attempt this time is not done through emails but done through mail 💌. I mean sending letter to the person at his home or the address the person submitted to Ledger when buying the hardware wallet.

[Porfirii]

My question is, if your email has been compromised by a scammer, is there a chance that you will change it?

This is more than your emails has been compromised because the house addresses of the Ledger users were also compromised. This scam attempt this time is not done through emails but done through mail 💌. I mean sending letter to the person at his home or the address the person submitted to Ledger when buying the hardware wallet.

Most of us have developed some kind of sense of suspicion that alerts us every time we get an email, SMS, notification in Telegram... but unlike in the past, when letters from Nigerian princes arrived by ordinary mail, I think that many of us keep relying in the traditional mail more than in digital communications.

Sending letters has a higher cost than email phishing or smishing, but it may make sense for scammers in exchange for a higher success rate. It also means greater exposure, probably, so I hope they make some oversight that will help catch them.

[rdluffy]

I read about this new scam yesterday when it was posted on my local board

I believe that many of us here have data leaked on the internet because we shop online, have a telephone company registration, internet provider etc, this is nothing new, but it seems quite uncomfortable to receive a letter at home knowing that it came from a data leak, I would be with this discomfort and a little insecurity to be honest

Any user with the slightest knowledge won't fall for this scam, I think it's quite difficult since perhaps the first and most pertinent warning is always: never inform your seed to anyone and we'll never ask for it

But once again the focus is on Ledger users, and even though I have a Nano S and I like it, it's hard to defend the company because the community is so angry with the many mistakes they made 

[EluguHcman]

There are so several data leaks of users information from the Ledger company that I don't doubt their incompetency. Stay safe, as no company that offers hardware wallet safe services will send you such mail to your house; no one will ask you for any update or upgrade. It's just scammers getting upgraded in their skills.

That is the discovered scamming method that is currently trending and a lot of crypto users has fallen victim to the trap.

I was involved in a cryptography discussion with some friends last week when this physical mail mail tender by scammers was brought out and it was kicked against of being a scam because no crypto wallet would perch on the order of synchronizing seed phrase on the process of physical presentation of a brand of wallet.

It was argued while some said if hardware wallets can be physically presented for physical storage of seed phrase where every transactions has to be confirmed and controls on same external device as the hardware wallet for a highily enhancement of security purposes, then there is every possiblities for a wallet brand to also serve you a hardware form of facilitating a wallet seed phrase at when necessary for security and privacy concerns (just as upgrading the seed phrase as the one shared on X platform on this thread).
I am sure that is a high level of ignorants.

My question on this revalidating or upgrading of wallet seed phrase is.... What will even prompt a wallet brand to request it users for such seed phrase request? Does seed phrase do have an expiring or outdating protocol what would warrant an upgrading? Does the seed phrase has a validation timeouts? That is absolutely a... Hell NO.
Instead you can only update your wallet application while your seed phrase remains unchanged as it is tied on the wallets address.

Be it sure that a wallet brand can only advice you to be strict and extremely careful and resist whichever means any message may come to you regarding the disclosure of your seed phrase and will never ask you to play any role of signing your seed phrase in aside when the network requests for it when you are facilitating to login or process a transaction.