Apple faces lawsuit over alleged Bitcoin scam
Three cryptocurrency investors filed a federal lawsuit against Apple (AAPL) on July 24, alleging they lost $1.8 million in Bitcoin through a fake wallet app listed on the App Store. The plaintiffs claim that Apple failed to adequately review and monitor apps distributed via its platform, allowing scammers to impersonate Sparrow Wallet—a legitimate desktop-only application—and steal users' recovery phrases. These phrases grant access to crypto wallets, enabling attackers to transfer victims’ assets. The lawsuit accuses Apple of violating California's Consumers Legal Remedies Act by exploiting consumer trust in the App Store as a secure environment for app downloads. It also claims that Apple did not act promptly even after being alerted about fraudulent apps. The plaintiffs include James Ramirez ($875,000 loss), Christopher Ellis ($840,000 loss), and Jalen Delgado ($120,000 loss). The thefts occurred between May 2025 and August 2025. Apple responded by removing the fake apps from its store on July 27 and terminating their developer accounts. Sparrow Wallet’s creator had previously warned Apple about these scams as early as January 2024, but no action was taken until recently.
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