Uneasy Money: Why Ledger's Supply Chain Became a Nearly $100M Target
Unchained | Oct 15 2026 | 01:18:39
A Ledger reseller's devices shipped with a hidden LTE modem inside. Taylor Monahan lays out how it passed the genuine check and why panicking now costs more.
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Genuine Ledger devices sold through the reseller CryptoBilis shipped with an LTE chip and eSIM wired inside, intercepting seed phrases on their way to the screen. The losses are estimated at $70 million to $100 million over roughly four months.
Kain Warwick, Taylor Monahan, and Austin Griffith trace how the implant passed Ledger's genuine check, why panicked users are now losing money to phishing and fake apps, and whether an iPhone or a DIY build makes a better hardware wallet.
They also cover the recording device planted in OpenAI's office, the decade-old XRP infinite mint bug that earned a $250K bounty, and why Taylor finds Google's Chrome payouts and $40K compute bills the more interesting math.
Then StarkNet's talk of becoming an L1 turns into a debate over whether Ethereum will need L2s at all. Kain's answer: the most Ethereum-equivalent chain is Ethereum itself.
Hosts:
Kain Warwick - Host of Uneasy Money and Founder of Infinex and Synthetix
Taylor Monahan - Co-host of Uneasy Money and Security Expert
Austin Griffith - Co-host of Uneasy Money and Builder Enablement at Ethereum Foundation
Timestamps
🎬 00:00 Intro
🔐 01:32 Why a Ledger reseller became the entry point for a supply chain attack
📡 09:15 Taylor on how the CryptoBilis attack moved past fake devices and scratchers
🧯 19:01 Why Taylor says panicked Ledger owners now face the bigger risk
💸 20:17 Why Austin sees DIY hardware wallets as the future
🕵️ 30:34 How Taylor “demixed” Zcash by following the gas trail
📣 34:52 Nexo: Generate daily interest on your crypto or borrow funds against your assets at https://unchainedcrypto.com/go/nexo-podcast-yt
🎙️ 35:37 What the bug planted in OpenAI's office says about AI espionage
🛠️ 41:42 Austin's homemade Alexa, blood wallet, and AI-run electronics bench
🪙 48:04 Why a decade-old XRP infinite mint bug points to AI-assisted hunting
🧮 51:04 Is $250K enough? Taylor compares the XRP bounty to Google's Chrome payout
⛓️ 01:00:30 StarkNet wants to become an L1: why Kain thinks that's where L2s end up
🏚️ 01:11:03 How MegaETH shows why L2 ecosystems struggle to keep their apps
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
========================================================
Thank you to our sponsor!
Put your crypto to work with Nexo: earn daily interest or borrow funds against your assets on one platform trusted by more than 10 million clients.
Find out more at Nexo.
Geo-restrictions, eligibility and terms apply.
========================================================
Quick favor: We’re deciding what Unchained does next; new shows, stream times, what’s worth paying for.
Our listener survey takes five minutes, it’s anonymous, and I read the write-in answers myself. Everyone who takes it can enter a drawing for a free year of Unchained Premium or Bits + Bips Premium. Open through Sunday, October 18.
— Laura
========================================================
Genuine Ledger devices sold through the reseller CryptoBilis shipped with an LTE chip and eSIM wired inside, intercepting seed phrases on their way to the screen. The losses are estimated at $70 million to $100 million over roughly four months.
Kain Warwick, Taylor Monahan, and Austin Griffith trace how the implant passed Ledger's genuine check, why panicked users are now losing money to phishing and fake apps, and whether an iPhone or a DIY build makes a better hardware wallet.
They also cover the recording device planted in OpenAI's office, the decade-old XRP infinite mint bug that earned a $250K bounty, and why Taylor finds Google's Chrome payouts and $40K compute bills the more interesting math.
Then StarkNet's talk of becoming an L1 turns into a debate over whether Ethereum will need L2s at all. Kain's answer: the most Ethereum-equivalent chain is Ethereum itself.
Hosts:
Kain Warwick - Host of Uneasy Money and Founder of Infinex and Synthetix
Taylor Monahan - Co-host of Uneasy Money and Security Expert
Austin Griffith - Co-host of Uneasy Money and Builder Enablement at Ethereum Foundation
Timestamps
🎬 00:00 Intro
🔐 01:32 Why a Ledger reseller became the entry point for a supply chain attack
📡 09:15 Taylor on how the CryptoBilis attack moved past fake devices and scratchers
🧯 19:01 Why Taylor says panicked Ledger owners now face the bigger risk
💸 20:17 Why Austin sees DIY hardware wallets as the future
🕵️ 30:34 How Taylor “demixed” Zcash by following the gas trail
📣 34:52 Nexo: Generate daily interest on your crypto or borrow funds against your assets at https://unchainedcrypto.com/go/nexo-podcast-yt
🎙️ 35:37 What the bug planted in OpenAI's office says about AI espionage
🛠️ 41:42 Austin's homemade Alexa, blood wallet, and AI-run electronics bench
🪙 48:04 Why a decade-old XRP infinite mint bug points to AI-assisted hunting
🧮 51:04 Is $250K enough? Taylor compares the XRP bounty to Google's Chrome payout
⛓️ 01:00:30 StarkNet wants to become an L1: why Kain thinks that's where L2s end up
🏚️ 01:11:03 How MegaETH shows why L2 ecosystems struggle to keep their apps
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices