Ledger Asks Cryptovilles to Halt Sales After Southeast Asia Asset Thefts

Ledger, the maker of cryptocurrency hardware wallets, has begun responding to a string of asset thefts affecting users in Southeast Asia.

BlockBeats and other outlets reported on October 9 that Ledger recently asked Cryptovilles to stop selling and shipping its devices. It also advised users who bought Ledger devices from Cryptovilles within the past 90 days not to complete the initial setup.

Ledger also instructed users who have already set up their devices to generate a new recovery phrase on a new Ledger device and move their assets to that wallet.

The company took the steps after asset theft cases recently emerged, mainly involving users in Southeast Asia. In connection with the incidents, on-chain analyst Spector said hundreds of wallets were affected across three networks — Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Tron (TRX) — and estimated losses at more than $86 million.

The specific cause of the incidents, and whether devices sold through Cryptovilles had a security vulnerability, has not yet been confirmed.