[WARNING] new fake Sparrow mobile wallet has appeared!!!

[cygan]

there’s a new fake Sparrow wallet in the Apple store again!
once again, the scammer is trying to get your seed phrase/words so they can steal your valuable Bitcoins!
the original Sparrow wallet is only available as a desktop version... all other mobile versions are fakes!

[_act_]

Apple Store is their target now, but some people will be saying that it is hard for malware the get into apple device. All is not about malware but about how to shield yourself against all form of attacks. All devices are very vulnerable if the owner of the device does not know how to stay away from the bad people. The most common store that hackers are using now is App store.

[satscraper]

there’s a new fake Sparrow wallet in the Apple store again!

What? AFAIK, Sparrow has never had mobile wallets so this trick is aimed at audience to whom everything is basically the flying f.ck.

I doubt that anyone who is in any meaningful way in  the wallet's loop will catch the bait though world is full of dunder heads.

To avoid such tricks the best practice is to follow the link from the official wallet site rather than trying to search for any wallets on either  Apple or Google marketplaces.

[ABCbits]

The UI of this fake wallet also feels too different with real one, especially the color choice. You can check https://www.sparrowwallet.com/docs/quick-start.html if you need comparison.

Apple Store is their target now, but some people will be saying that it is hard for malware the get into apple device.

In reality, it's not that hard when there are multiple news that says people lost their coin/money due to fake app. Earlier this month, fake Ledger Live exist on App store that led to 50 victim with $9.5M loss.

[Mia Chloe]

there’s a new fake Sparrow wallet in the Apple store again!
once again, the scammer is trying to get your seed phrase/words so they can steal your valuable Bitcoins!
the original Sparrow wallet is only available as a desktop version... all other mobile versions are fakes!

Big thumbs up for bringing this up cygan. These scammers obviously are trying to target those that have been looking for the mobile app because last I checked sparrow is almost as popular as exodus and Electrum especially if it relates to bitcoin transactions.

This is literally another reminder that just because it comes from the apple store or play store doesn't mean it's real or authentic these providers should at least care more because people trust these stores too much most times.

[Charles-Tim]

What? AFAIK, Sparrow has never had mobile wallets so this trick is aimed at audience to whom everything is basically the flying f.ck.

They may say wow! Sparrow finally made it into App Store. Download it, import their wallet seed phrases. And that is all for their bitcoin to be stolen.

This is literally another reminder that just because it comes from the apple store or play store doesn't mean it's real or authentic these providers should at least care more because people trust these stores too much most times.

I hope they will see more than that. They need to know that they should first confirm on the wallet official site to know if it is true or not.

[Lucius]

This is proof that no one checks whether an app is legitimate or fake before approving it for entry into the store. Companies that make billions don't care about their clients, because if they did, they would hire people to do checks and eliminate 99% of these fake apps.

Still, you can't protect people from themselves, those who don't know what they're doing will always find a way to harm themselves in one way or another.

[mindrust]

It must have escaped Professor Oak’s lab. Since it is a damn sparrow and whether it is fake or not, unless it is a shiny version (which changes things a little), I don’t see a reason to create panic about it.

It should be an easy catch. Just throw a great ball on it (the blue ones) and then return it to the professor.

I am pretty sure he will reward you some candy or other utility items at worst. Do not settle for potions. The old fuck can be a cheapo sometimes.

[Pmalek]

That's not the only fake Sparrow wallet currently hosted on the App Store. In fact, I can't even see it right now. Maybe they already deleted it. There is another one. I will post a broken link to it in case you guys want to report it and help in it getting removed from the store.

(https) ://apps.apple.com/de/app/ sparrow-mobile-wallet-m-sig/ id6762899665

Apple Store is their target now, but some people will be saying that it is hard for malware the get into apple device.

That's just the thing. This isn't malware so Apple wouldn't find it dangerous at first look. It's a software that probably behaves similarly to legit bitcoin wallets but with one distinguishable feature. It sends your seed remotely to someone else.

[Yamane_Keto]

This reminds me of Apple removing fake Ledger from their App Store. It seems they're targeting hardware wallet users, as Sparrow is the most compatible with hardware wallets.

App Store's reputation has suffered greatly.

[BitMaxz]

App Store's reputation has suffered greatly.

not the App Store, but the Apple Store. I used to believe that iOS was immune to malware and online attacks, but there is no such thing as immunity anymore. Even if you use Linux, you can still become infected. These hackers are becoming smarter day by day, so if you don't know how to protect yourself from any of these online attacks, you risk having your funds stolen.
Knowing how to avoid them is still important; going to the official website or asking them here on the forum will tell you whether you are installing a real or fake mobile wallet.
I hope Apple double-checks new apps added to the Apple Store before listing them, or atleast hires crypto experts or people with expert knowledge of crypto to avoid the same scenario, as this is not new because there was a fake Electrum app also listed on the Apple Store in the past.
They should need an agent to help them avoid those fake apps.

[Zaguru12]

not the App Store, but the Apple Store. I used to believe that iOS was immune to malware and online attacks, but there is no such thing as immunity anymore. Even if you use Linux, you can still become infected. These hackers are becoming smarter day by day, so if you don't know how to protect yourself from any of these online attacks, you risk having your funds stolen.

I don’t think you were the only person, I think it was more general agreeable fact then, because while the android play store was a den for fake APPs just like the window OS, Apple play store and it’s MacOS was not like that, it had this way that it filters this Apps not getting there and the mobile device was my go to then because of this act than Android.

I think it actually has something to do with policy which hinders this fake apps getting into their store but is it that this restrictions have been the uplifted or relaxed and probably thorough scrutiny again like before and Apps can just pay and get listed on the store or that scammers have actually found a way to game the restrictions and find their way round it.

Probably could be policy changes a have seen even Tim Cook is stepping down as CEO with John Ternus ready to take over,

[PX-Z]

Apple Store is their target now, but some people will be saying that it is hard for malware the get into apple device. hackers are using now is App store.

Looks like there's a loophole on how App Store approve those apps where these scammers is trying to abuse. If i remember correctly they announced something like strict approval of those apps before but it looks like its not very effective. There are even reports of multiple apps using the "Ledger" name, which makes you wonder how they aren't flagged right away.

[PrivacyG]

Damn it.  It looks like the 'Elon Musk giveaway' plague has now moved on from X and YouTube to the App Store and it works too.

And like always, this is probably going to happen over and over again almost like Apple pretends it does not happen and people are not losing millions.  Almost as if the fix could be as simple as a manual verification trigger mechanism for publishing software that has a mix of key words like 'Cryptocurrency', 'Banking', 'Wallet', 'Money' et cetera.  Almost as if this kind of software should go through manual verification anyway in the first place.

I just think they are sitting back like any of the other corporations who did for so long, slightly enjoying the show.

[nc50lc]

What? AFAIK, Sparrow has never had mobile wallets so this trick is aimed at audience to whom everything is basically the flying f.ck.

There's someone in Electrum board who downloaded a fake Electrum app from App Store because he can't find an iOS version in Electrum's official website.
Everyone's questioning him why.

I wont link the thread for its OP's sake but it's should be easy to find for those who want to read it.

[FinneysTrueVision]

There's someone in Electrum board who downloaded a fake Electrum app from App Store because he can't find an iOS version in Electrum's official website.
Everyone's questioning him why.

I wont link the thread for its OP's sake but it's should be easy to find for those who want to read it.

The same person seems to be behind both fake apps. The fake Electrum app is called ElectrumApp Wallet Manager, which is practically identical to SparrowApp Wallet Manager. Both apps also have descriptions which make them appear like they are mundane productivity apps.

The Sparrow one has been removed, as far as I can tell, but the Electrum one has been there for months. Reporting a fraudulent app to Apple is not as easy and straightforward as it should be.

[Pmalek]

There's someone in Electrum board who downloaded a fake Electrum app from App Store because he can't find an iOS version in Electrum's official website.
Everyone's questioning him why.

I haven't read about that particular case, so I don't know the whole story. But at first glance, that sounds even worse than being a total beginner and going directly to an app store and searching for a particular wallet you want to use. That person KNEW that the software they wanted wasn't available for their OS because they checked the official website. Assumingly, they couldn't come to terms with that, so they went and downloaded an unofficial app that turned out to be malicious (go figure).

How do you even help people like that

[nc50lc]

How do you even help people like that

Even without knowing the details, you have the same reaction to those who read the thread.
His initial "demands" are quite interesting but after a while, we convinced him that Electrum isn't at fault,
You'll probably enjoy reading that thread, it's still in the first page of Electrum board BTW.

It's getting off-topic so, that'll be my last reply about it.

[promise444c5]

That's not the only fake Sparrow wallet currently hosted on the App Store. In fact, I can't even see it right now. Maybe they already deleted it. There is another one. I will post a broken link to it in case you guys want to report it and help in it getting removed from the store.

(https) ://apps.apple.com/de/app/ sparrow-mobile-wallet-m-sig/ id6762899665

You literally had a similar post on August last year when Jimmy Ramirez lost his 7.4BTC due to similar  Fake sparrow wallet on his IPhone . It’s been heating up since then..
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5552731.0

I’m wondering how  similar apps keep making it to AppStore after Apple removed almost same thing in the past, didn’t they record the complaint then ? So how come we have something similar again . Their review process should be questioned fr

[mcdouglasx]

Apple and Google should have stricter measures regarding the publication of apps related to cryptocurrencies or banking services. They should have a multi-layered verification system to better protect users. Even though Sparrow doesn't have apps, there are always people who ignore these things. For example, if I tell a friend who isn't in the crypto world that I recommend the Sparrow wallet, the first thing they'll probably do is go look for it in the mobile app store.