How to avoid downloading a fake bitcoin wallet

Discussion in 'General Bitcoin Gambling Discussion' started by Humble Servant, Aug 5, 2016.

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  1. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    As we reported here, a number of fake bitcoin wallets have appeared in the iTunes App Store with the same names as popular wallets like BreadWallet and GreenAddress. Because these wallets look and function like the original legit wallets, it can be very difficult to recognize a fake BTC wallet that will steal your bitcoin. Since many new bitcoin users are gamblers rather than tech geeks, this could prove to be a huge problem going forward. For this reason, I would recommend that anyone downloading a wallet app should follow the link on the wallets website to the relevant app store. There is usually a "Download on iTunes" or "Available on Google Play" button that will take you to the correct app.

    Any other tips for recognizing fake wallets?
     
    Humble Servant, Aug 5, 2016
    #1
  2. 2damoon

    2damoon Member

    you should also check the update log for the app on google play and itunes before you download. the genuine bitcoin wallet app will have updates going back a couple of years. the fake wallet will have been added very recently and have very few updates.
     
    2damoon, Sep 2, 2016
    #2
  3. BitcoinAnarchist

    BitcoinAnarchist Member

    Sometimes when I plug in my Trezor it asks me if I want to updated the firmware. Before I download the update, I always check the Trezor website to make sure that are actually pushing a new update and it's not just some malware.
     
    BitcoinAnarchist, Sep 16, 2016
    #3
  4. Spud

    Spud Member

    according to aaron voisine, the developer of breadwallet, at least $20,000 has been stolen. they were contacted by one users who lost $10k worth of btc. if bitcoin is to go mainstream then there needs to be a way for users to verify that their wallets are legit. this whole fiasco shows that apple's review process isn't as thorough as it once was.
     
    Spud, Sep 18, 2016
    #4
  5. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    Ten thousand dollars in BTC is far too much to be storing on a smartphone wallet. They should only be used as hot wallets to store enough crypto for your day to day expenses.
     
    Humble Servant, Sep 26, 2016
    #5
  6. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    As we reported here today, scam wallets are now being advertised using Google Adwords. Just because you see a wallet advertised by Google in your search results, it does not mean that it's legit. Always do your own research and check that it is listed on a reputable site like bitcoin.org before you download.
     
    Humble Servant, Oct 10, 2016
    #6
  7. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    Reddit is reporting that a new fake bitcoin wallet managed to get listed on iTunes called Kube wallet. BEWARE EVERYONE

     
    Humble Servant, Oct 19, 2016
    #7
  8. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    There's another fake bitcoin wallet being advertised by Google Adwords that is masquerading as blockchain.info. Be wakeful folks!

     
    Humble Servant, Nov 21, 2016
    #8
  9. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    With these 4 scam wallets it is easy to know that they are not real because when you click on the developer links, you are taken to "url does not exist" pages.

     
    Humble Servant, Dec 5, 2016
    #9
  10. Gooch

    Gooch Member

    Over the Xmas period KeepKey were hacked also. Does this mean that hardware wallets aren't safe either?
     
    Gooch, Jan 2, 2017
    #10
  11. Kaboom

    Kaboom Member

    maybe their website was hacked but i don't think their devices were hacked. personally i use trezor and ledger wallets.
     
    Kaboom, Mar 31, 2017
    #11
  12. Wonka

    Wonka Member

    The apps on my phone automatically update so what happens if a hacker gets control of the wallets iTunes App Store account and updates the app with malicious code that steal my private keys? My app is going to automatically update to the latest version and poof, my cryptocurrency is gone. That's why I only keep a couple of hundred dollars worth of crypto on my phone.
     
    Wonka, Jul 1, 2017
    #12
  13. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    I read an interview with the developer of bread wallet and he was asked this question. He said that there is a delay of a couple of days between changes being made and the updated wallet going live on the App Store so even if their account was hacked, they would have enough time to cancel the update before users install it on their phones.
     
    Humble Servant, Sep 6, 2017
    #13
  14. Gooch

    Gooch Member

    it is already tricky to keep track of all the phone wallet apps being released and pretty soon we are going to see dozens of lightning network wallets also. the main thing is only to keep a small amount of crypto in your hot wallet, nothing more than you would keep in your pocket wallet.
     
    Gooch, May 11, 2018
    #14
  15. Freddy

    Freddy Member

    for god sake never trust a phone wallet with any more money than you would store in your regular wallet. if you own $500+ worth of bitcoin, you should probably think about investing approx $100 in a hardware wallet like Trezor, Ledger or ColdCard.
     
    Freddy, Mar 1, 2019
    #15
  16. Humble Servant

    Humble Servant Active Member Staff Member

    I totally agree, invest in a hardware wallet. Here is a useful guide https://www.bitcoingambling.io/best-cryptocurrency-hardware-wallets.html
     
    Humble Servant, May 7, 2019
    #16

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