DefiLlama Delayed Mobile App Launch to Combat Fake Apps on Apple Store

DefiLlama’s founder, known pseudonymously as 0xngmi, revealed that the company intentionally delayed launching its own mobile app while working to get phishing apps impersonating DefiLlama removed from Apple’s App Store. In a Saturday post on X, 0xngmi explained that the team wanted all fake versions taken down first to prevent users from being scammed before the official app went live.

Apple Acts Quickly After Proof of Theft

According to 0xngmi, DefiLlama had spent months trying to get one particularly harmful app removed from the App Store without success. That changed once the team downloaded the malicious app themselves and documented it draining funds from a small crypto wallet. After providing this evidence, Apple removed the app within just a few days.

Part of a Recurring Problem in Crypto

This isn’t the first time fake apps impersonating well-known crypto platforms have surfaced on Apple’s store. Similar phishing apps impersonating Rabby Wallet and Curve Finance appeared back in 2024. In a separate incident from November 2023, a fake Ledger Live app listed on the Microsoft Store led to the theft of 588,000 dollars across 38 separate transactions, highlighting how widespread this type of scam has become across major app marketplaces.