Hardware-wallet scam costs one crypto holder more than US$282 million
ZachXBT reported that one holder lost over US$282 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin through a hardware-wallet scam. About US$700,000 was reportedly frozen, with no confirmed return. Keep recovery words private and verify support through the maker’s official site.
Never share your wallet recovery words or type them into a website at someone’s request. End unexpected wallet-support calls or messages, then contact the maker through its official website; Trezor’s guidance says to report suspected phishing through its support chatbot.
What’s happening
A single crypto holder lost more than US$282 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin on 10 January 2026, according to blockchain investigator ZachXBT, who disclosed the theft on 16 January. He described social engineering involving a hardware wallet and traced subsequent movements through exchanges and THORChain. The precise deception was not established in the supplied reports: Crypto.news called it unclear, while Cointelegraph attributed a more specific account to security firm ZeroShadow, saying an attacker impersonated Trezor support and obtained the victim’s recovery phrase. Cointelegraph also reported ZeroShadow’s claim that about US$700,000 was frozen. A freeze is not confirmation that the victim received money back. As at 3 November, the reviewed sources do not confirm returned funds, arrests or charges. No affected device models, software versions or incident-specific software fix were established. Hardware-wallet owners should protect their recovery words and independently verify anyone claiming to offer support.
- What
- Scam
- Affects
- Bitcoin and Litecoin held by one hardware-wallet user
- Fixed in
- Nothing to patch
- Since
- 10 Jan 2026
- Closed
- 17 Jan 2026
Timeline
- Update
Crypto.news reported that the precise deception remained unclear. Its account therefore left more uncertainty about the method than the support-impersonation account attributed to ZeroShadow.
- Update
According to Cointelegraph, ZeroShadow said in a Friday statement that about US$700,000 was frozen within roughly 20 minutes of its being alerted. The firm attributed the theft to someone impersonating Trezor support and obtaining the victim’s recovery phrase; freezing funds did not establish their return.
- Made public
ZachXBT publicly reported the theft and said the attacker converted stolen assets into Monero and moved Bitcoin across other networks through THORChain. The Block said it could not independently establish the Monero conversions from the particular addresses it examined.
- UpdateNothing to patch
One victim lost more than US$282 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin through a hardware-wallet social engineering scam, according to ZachXBT. He identified 1,459 BTC and 2.05 million LTC in the theft.
Sources
- Scams and phishing — general hardware-wallet safety guidanceTrezor
- US$282 million Bitcoin and Litecoin hardware-wallet scam disclosureZachXBT · 16 Jan 2026
- Monero hit an all-time high earlier this week, and crypto sleuth ZachXBT thinks he knows whyThe Block · 16 Jan 2026
- User loses $282M in one of the largest social engineering crypto heistsCointelegraph via TradingView
- $282M in Bitcoin and Litecoin stolen in hardware wallet social engineering scamCrypto.news · 17 Jan 2026