Apple Hit With Lawsuit Alleging $1.8 Million Crypto Wallet Scam via App Store

BlockBeats reported that on July 28, Apple was sued in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California over allegations it failed to effectively curb cryptocurrency scam apps on the App Store. Three users say weaknesses in Apple's app review process led them to download fraudulent crypto wallet applications, resulting in combined losses of more than $1.8 million. According to the complaint, the scam app posed as the Bitcoin wallet "Sparrow Wallet," even though the official Sparrow Bitcoin wallet has never been available on iOS. The plaintiffs say they transferred Bitcoin to the fake app and lost funds, including approximately $875,000 for one user, about $840,000 for another, and roughly $120,000 for the third. The lawsuit argues that Apple has long marketed its strict App Store screening as a core security feature, asserting its closed ecosystem lowers the risk of malware and fraud, and should therefore bear responsibility when fraudulent apps are distributed on its platform. The filing also references public criticism from the founder of Sparrow Bitcoin Wallet, who has said Apple previously allowed counterfeit apps to appear in the App Store. The plaintiffs are seeking a jury trial, recovery of losses and additional damages, and an order requiring Apple to strengthen risk warnings and security disclosures in the App Store. Apple said apps that impersonate others violate App Store rules and are removed quickly, adding that there are currently no counterfeit Sparrow Wallet apps on the App Store. Apple has previously said its review team rejected more than 371,000 app submissions in 2025 for impersonation, spam, or deceptive practices.