MediaMarktSaturn Suspends Ledger Sales Over Spyware Allegations

MediaMarktSaturn, a leading electronics retailer in Europe, has halted the sale of Ledger hardware wallets across 11 countries and over 1,000 stores as of October 13, 2026. This decision follows alarming reports from customers who discovered unauthorized modifications in Ledger devices purchased from the retailer, which allegedly included hardware designed to capture sensitive recovery phrases.

One notable incident involved a customer in Germany who reported finding a hardware implant capable of transmitting a user's 24-word recovery phrase via LTE, undermining the primary purpose of a hardware wallet, which is to keep such information secure and offline. Ledger's security team has confirmed the presence of these unauthorized implants in certain units sold by CryptoBilis, a reseller based in Southeast Asia, while tracing the affected inventory back to a distributor, Aqipa GmbH.

Despite the serious nature of these findings, MediaMarktSaturn has not reported any confirmed thefts from its customers. The retailer's suspension appears to be a precautionary measure. Ledger has reiterated that it never requests recovery phrases from users and has urged vigilance against potential scams. As investigations continue, the estimated financial losses linked to the compromised CryptoBilis devices range between $86 million and $102 million, raising concerns about the broader implications for the hardware wallet market.

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Source: KLEA News