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A fake Bitcoin scam app has reportedly stolen over $600,000 in Bitcoin (BTC) from an iPhone user, the Washington Post reports. Cryptocurrency holder Phillipe Christodoulou lost nearly all his life savings saying Apple should be held responsible for this situation. Moreover, he even filed a report with the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding the same.
Over $600,000 in Bitcoin Stolen via Fake App
Back in February, Christodoulou wanted to check his Bitcoin balance stored on his hardware wallet Trezor. So, he searched for Trezor on the App Store, bringing an app with the same name and logo used by the hardware wallet maker with five-star ratings.
The bitcoins were reportedly lost after Christodoulou entered the seed phrase into the supposed wallet app.
Unaware that Trezor does not currently provide a mobile application, Christodoulou downloaded a fake Trezor app with a five-star rating, giving the impression that it was indeed an official app.
Christodoulou said that Apple, which collects 15% to 30% commissions on sales, should be held accountable, saying:
“They betrayed the trust that I had in them. Apple doesn’t deserve to get away with this.”
According to the Washington Post, Christodoulou filed a report with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Bitcoin Scam Apps Running Rampant on Android and iOS
Apple says the fake Trezor app got through the App Store through a bait-and-switch. Interestingly, the fake app was named Trezor and used the company’s logo and branding.
However, it was originally specified as a “cryptography” app that would encrypt iPhone files and store passwords and later changed itself into a cryptocurrency wallet, which Apple was not able to detect.
UK-based crypto regulation company Coinfirm said that fake apps on Apple and Google’s Play Store are quite common. In fact, five people have reported cryptocurrency stolen by the fake Trezor app on iOS worth a total of $1.6 million. On Android, the losses amounted to $600,000 in cryptocurrency, according to Coinfirm.