Key conclusions

• A breach at a trading partner could expose customer order data even if wallet systems remain secure.

• Actual order context, such as product, price, and contact or shipping information, can make phishing attempts seem legitimate and harder to detect.

• Treat incoming “support” messages as untrusted until verified through official Ledger resources.

In early January 2026, certain Ledger customers were notified that personal information and orders related to purchases on Ledger.com had been accessed during a security incident involving Global-e, a third-party e-commerce partner that acts as a “seller of record” for certain orders.

Ledger stressed that its own hardware and software systems had not been compromised. But the leaked purchase data was enough to trigger a familiar second act: highly targeted phishing attempts that seem legitimate because they appeal to real-world details.

This article explains why breaches at vendors outside the wallet company can still put users at risk, what types of data leaks make spoofing scams more convincing, and how to evaluate “help” messages using the principles Ledger repeatedly emphasizes in its fraud advisories.

Global-e incident explained

Ledger warning in January 2026 involved a security incident at Global-e, a third-party e-commerce partner used by many brands that may act as a “registered seller” for certain purchases on Ledger.com.

In practice, Global-e sits in the checkout and order fulfillment chain and stores customer and order information required to process and ship physical products.

According to a Ledger customer notice and multiple reports, unauthorized access occurred to Global-e’s IT systems. The affected data concerned customers who made purchases through this Global-e payment process.

Exposure is described as order-related information, a type of data that can include contact and shipping identifiers, as well as purchase metadata such as what was ordered.

Ledger emphasized that the incident occurred regardless of self-care facilities and infrastructure. As a result, it did not reveal private keys, recovery phrases or account balances.

Did you know? Once attackers have verified order details, they can create phishing emails that are original enough to bypass the user’s initial skepticism.

Which leaked data is most useful to phishers and why

When people hear “data breach,” they often first think of passwords or payment cards. In this case, the more significant risk was context, that is, enough real-world detail to make the impersonating message seem like it was clearly intended for you.

Ledger’s Global-e incident notice, along with the incident report, described an exposure restricted to basic personal and contact information and order details related to Ledger.com purchases processed through Global-e. This included data such as what was purchased and pricing information.

This helps fraudsters overcome two common social engineering challenges:

• 1) Reliability: A message containing your name and referring to a real order (“your Nano order”, “purchase price” or “your order details”) may appear to be a legitimate response from a merchant or support team, even if it comes from a criminal. Reports of the incident suggest that the leaked data may have contained just this type of “evidence”.

• 2) Relevance: Order metadata gives attackers a credible excuse to contact you, such as delivery issues, “account verification,” “security updates,” or “urgent action required.” Ledger’s current phishing guidance highlights that these narratives are typically intended to trick victims into high-risk actions, such as revealing a recovery phrase or interacting with a phony aid flow.

Phishing line in Ledger scams

Ledger’s fraud guidelines describe a consistent set of patterns. The messages impersonate Ledger or a vendor or payment provider and attempt to create urgency for a “security issue,” “account notification,” or “verification required,” and then direct the recipient to a step that puts recovery of credentials at risk.

The most common warning signs are behavioral, not technical. The message says something time-sensitive, such as your wallet being “at risk”, your order being “locked”, or the need for a “firmware update”. It then prompts the recipient to click on a page or form and tries to extract a 24-word secret password recovery phrase.

Ledger will never ask for this phrase, and you should never enter it anywhere other than directly on your device.

These campaigns typically spread through multiple channels, including email, text messages, and sometimes phone calls or postal mail, and may appear more convincing when attackers can refer to real purchase context drawn from leaked order data.

Ledger maintains that to reduce uncertainty conductivity on common types of fraud and explains how to verify legitimate communications through official channels.

Did you know? The 2026 Global-e compromise wasn’t the only time Ledger buyer data was exposed. After the Ledger e-commerce and marketing database was hacked in July 2020, the data collection later published as of December 2020, it reportedly included over 1 million email addresses and approximately 272,000 records containing names, physical addresses, and phone numbers.

It is worth remembering practical defensive measures

When phishing follows a data breach, it usually asks you for sensitive information, usually a recovery password, or to approve an action you did not initiate.

That’s why Ledger’s guidelines remain consistent across all fraud advisories: Never share a 24-word phrase and never enter it on a website, form or app prompt, even if the message appears to be official.

A uncomplicated way to reduce risk is to evaluate messages using a clear process:

• By default, treat any “security-urgent” message as untrusted, especially if it asks you to click to “verify”, “restore”, or “secure”.

• If the message refers to real order details such as product, price or shipping, remember that this is what leaked third-party commercial data enables. This is not proof of legality.

• If in doubt, do not continue the conversation thread. Operate Official Ledger resources to check current fraud patterns and confirm legitimate communication channels.

Stick to a few rules that don’t change, even if the story in the email changes. This is general educational information, not personalized safety advice.

What does the Global-e incident teach us about the risk of phishing?

The Global-e incident is a reminder that self-custody can remain technically intact while users still face real risks in the commerce layer.

The checkout partner, shipping process, or customer service department may legally store names, contact information, and order metadata. However, once this type of data set is exposed, it can almost immediately be turned into convincing impersonation attempts.

Therefore, the most lasting protection comes from following a few unchanging rules: treat incoming “support” as untrusted by default, check communication channels with official resources, and never reveal or enter a 24-word phrase anywhere else except directly on the device itself.