Fake Google Chrome extension allowed to steal funds from popular hardware wallet

Cryptocurrency hardware wallet maker Ledger has warned its users of another phishing attack aimed at stealing their funds - [...] https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1085437947660215829/

Cryptocurrency hardware wallet maker Ledger has warned its users of another phishing attack aimed at stealing their funds - this time using a Google Chrome extension. Fake Google Chrome extension In a March 5 tweet, the company warned that there is a fake Google Chrome browser extension with which hackers are trying to steal user's cryptocurrencies:   The criminals' activities were spotted on March 4 by Catalina Cimpanu, a cybersecurity journalist at business technology website ZDNet. According to him, the malicious Google Chrome extension was discovered by Harry Denley, director of security at the MyCrypto platform. The fake browser extension is called Ledger Live. On the surface, it looks like a real mobile and desktop app by that name, which allows hardware wallet users to approve transactions by "syncing their hardware wallet to a trusted device." As of this writing, the fake Ledger Live extension has already been removed from the Chrome Web Store. According to the media, it has been downloaded at least 120 times. As ZDNet reports, the malicious extension tried to mislead users by pretending to be the Chrome version of the original Ledger Live app, which allows users to check balances and approve cryptocurrency transactions. Users were offered to install the extension and connect their Ledger wallet to it, while entering the wallet's starting phrase - a stock phrase or keyword used to access their wallet. Denley, who first discovered the phishing attack, scoffed at the malicious extension, saying that it made no sense to install and use such an extension with a hardware wallet that is meant to protect funds by storing cryptocurrency offline. However, he admitted that he would not be surprised if the fake extension actually fooled many people, adding that "a big problem in the cryptocurrency space is teaching people that their private keys should remain offline." The malicious extension may have also misled some users, given that it was advertised by the online advertising platform Google Ads, Denley reported. Ledger's response In its warning, Ledger stressed that the platform never asks users for password recovery phrases on its own. She added to never share a 24-word string. Tags Google Chrome hackers cryptocurrency theft Ledger