Apple’s app store was recently breached after a fake Phantom crypto wallet imitating the original Phantom wallet was detected. The app pops up as an ad when users search for the Phantom wallet and often appears before the original application.
Phony Phantom App
The original Phantom is classified as a utility, but a publisher called Meta Voxify lists the bogus app as an educational tool. Moreover, Meta Voxify only features one app on its listings, which raises questions about its credibility.
The description of the bogus software shows that it is a text-to-speech conversion tool named Voxify AI. However, a search for Voxify AI on the app store leads consumers to the fake Phantom wallet app.
Persistent Breaches in Apple’s App Store
Furthermore, the recent incident is not an isolated case. Last year, malicious people published a clone of the Rabby Wallet cryptocurrency wallet.
The top search results for “Rabby Wallet” turned out to be this bogus wallet. At that time, the official wallet was only accessible as a Google Chrome extension and a desktop application.
Over the years, scammers have focused increasingly on smartphone users. A 2023 analysis by Sophos, a cybersecurity company, found that criminals were using Apple’s and Google’s app store security systems to install dangerous apps.
Usually, scammers gain access by using programs signed under a valid Apple certificate. Then, they trick victims by linking these programs to rogue servers under their control.
Meanwhile, Mende Matthias, co-founder of the Dubai Blockchain Centre, claimed that he lost over $100,000 from his Phantom wallet. Matthias denied visiting any dangerous websites or links, implying that his transparency about his investments might have attracted attention. However, he later admitted that he did not lose his funds but failed to share how his wallet was exploited.
The Growth of Bitcoin Whole-coiner Wallets
For the past 13 months, the number of Bitcoin “whole-coiners” or wallet addresses owning one or more Bitcoin has skyrocketed, surpassing one million. Based on Glassnode data, this milestone was first attained on May 13, 2023, when Bitcoin was trading at $27,000.
These wholecoiner addresses reached almost 1,024,000 at the start of 2024. Though the price of Bitcoin has doubled since May 2023, 1,010,800 addresses still own one or more Bitcoin.
Attaining one million Bitcoin wallets points to a notable rise in Bitcoin ownership. Furthermore, establishments like investment companies and crypto exchanges usually hold a significant amount of Bitcoin.
There are currently 19.7 million BTCs in circulation, 2.48 million of which (valued at $152 billion) are kept on the leading centralized exchanges, particularly Binance and Coinbase. Glassnode further notes that an estimated 3 million BTC (worth $80.4 billion) are “permanently lost.”
Since BTC’s introduction more than fifteen years ago, there have been more whole-coiner addresses. At first, a single address belonging to Satoshi Nakamoto reportedly held more than one Bitcoin.
This figure rose to 30,000 in early 2010 and kept climbing over the years. Moreover, there have been notable declines between March and May 2016, September and December 2018, and February and July 2021. Notwithstanding, the general trend in Bitcoin ownership is on the rise, which highlights the increasing adoption of digital assets.