Kaspersky has exposed OkoBot, a year-old malware operation that uses roughly 20 modules to steal crypto wallet recovery phrases and has affected users across at least five countries.
Summary
- Kaspersky uncovered OkoBot using roughly 20 modules to steal crypto wallet credentials.
- The malware has affected users in Brazil, Vietnam, Canada, Mexico, and Turkey.
- OkoBot uses fake recovery screens, keylogging, spyware, and ClickFix commands to target victims.
Kaspersky researchers discovered that the malware has remained active for more than a year, according to a report published by Bits.media. Most identified victims were located in Brazil, Vietnam, Canada, Mexico, and Turkey, while the operators blocked IP addresses from Russia and other Commonwealth of Independent States countries.
Distributed through GitHub repositories, OkoBot is disguised as legitimate software, including Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio. Kaspersky found that the attackers rely on the ClickFix social engineering method, which tricks victims into running malicious commands on their own devices.
The technique often presents users with fake error messages, verification steps, or repair instructions. Following those directions causes victims to execute code that installs the malware without realizing the command is malicious.
OkoBot targets seed phrases and wallet credentials
Among OkoBot’s modules, SeedHunter displays a fake recovery interface linked to hardware wallets such as Ledger and Trezor, according to Kaspersky. When users enter their recovery phrases into the fraudulent screen, the module sends the information to the malware operators.
A second module called MC Keylogger records keyboard input and monitors clipboard activity, allowing it to capture passwords, copied wallet addresses, and other credentials. OkoSpyware can track wallet passwords and record videos of open windows, giving attackers another way to observe activity on an infected device.
Once a recovery phrase is exposed, the attackers can use it to take control of the associated wallet and move its assets. Kaspersky warned that victims have little chance of recovering stolen cryptocurrency because blockchain transfers are generally irreversible.
The malware’s modular design also lets its operators collect different types of information from a single infected system. According to the security company’s findings, OkoBot can target both wallet access data and credentials connected to other services used on the device.
ClickFix attacks have also targeted crypto developers
OkoBot is the latest malware campaign found using ClickFix against the cryptocurrency sector. As crypto.news reported in April, North Korea’s state-backed Lazarus Group used the same technique in a macOS campaign known as “Mach-O Man.”
Citing research from CertiK, the report found that Lazarus sent fake online meeting invitations to fintech and crypto executives. Victims were instructed to paste supposed repair or verification commands into the macOS Terminal, which installed malware capable of stealing cryptocurrency and corporate information.
CertiK also found that the Mach-O Man toolkit deleted itself after running, making forensic analysis more difficult. The campaign combined social engineering with terminal-level commands instead of relying only on malicious file downloads.
Developer tools have provided another route into crypto systems. In May, crypto.news reported that TrapDoor malware was distributed through poisoned software packages targeting developers in cryptocurrency, decentralized finance, artificial intelligence, and security infrastructure.
According to that report, TrapDoor sought wallet data, API keys, cloud credentials, and SSH access tied to services and ecosystems including Coinbase, Binance, MetaMask, Brave, Solana, Sui, and Aptos. Researchers also found hidden prompts designed to manipulate Claude and Cursor into running fake security scans that exposed secrets and transmitted them to the attackers.
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