This week, a leak related to a bitcoin wallet manufacturer’s customer database escalated when a hacker revealed the true extent of the original leak.
Instead of the initial 9,000+ customers Ledger claimed were affected, there were actually 270,000 people whose names, addresses, phone numbers and more were published.
With each passing day, the implications of the leak become clearer, showing just how scary things could get for innocent victims. In a Reddit post, a Bitcoin investor revealed that a self-proclaimed „meth addict“ had obtained his data from the leak and threatened to not only kidnap the investor, but also „stab to death“ any of his relatives who were in his home.
Horror stories are popping up on Reddit
Things just got a little scary for bitcoin investors with a ledger hardware wallet.
Actually, moving BTC, ETH and other crypto assets to an offline security device like Ledger is considered an ideal solution. But as crypto investors have learned the hard way, protecting yourself and your digital assets while maintaining physical security isn’t always that easy.
Many who use a ledger to protect their assets are now seeing their homes and families at risk.
Just days after the warning of a widespread data leak that affected the private and personal information of 270,000 users, reports came from multiple sources. One Twitter user claims that hackers somehow got hold of his SIM card and used it to access Coinbase accounts and withdraw Bitcoin and other assets.
Worse, because home addresses along with phone numbers were part of the breach, one victim shared an exceptionally frightening story on Reddit.
Meth addict threatens investor, demands bitcoin
A self-proclaimed „meth addict“ called the Ledger customer and demanded a ransom of 10 XMR (Monero) – otherwise he would come directly to the user’s house to kidnap him and „stab to death“ all family members in the house.
The user, fearing for his family’s life and his own, was forced to call the police, who placed a patrol car in front of his house.
Unfortunately, it is those who actually care about safety who were put at significant risk by a company whose sole mission was to protect them.
And while that is ultimately true and Ledger is to blame for the current situation, it could happen to any company and any customer at any time.
Because privacy is so important with cryptocurrencies, people should consider taking additional steps, such as creating a pseudonym and using alternate addresses and phone numbers when creating accounts related to Bitcoin or Altcoins.
The more the emerging asset class grows, the larger the target of these assets and this information will become.