Ledger unveiled a new crypto security device on Thursday with strengthened protections against physical tampering, days after the company confirmed that hardware wallets sold through a reseller in Asia contained malicious implants.

The device, named Atom and priced at $849, combines a hardware crypto wallet with everyday applications in a smartphone-like design. According to Ledger, Atom separates Android apps from sensitive wallet operations and includes safeguards that the company says would block the implants used in the recent Asia incident. Ledger also advertises that the device can detect tampering even when it is switched off. Shipping is expected to begin in summer 2027, according to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph.

Ledger Atom will also support AI agent approvals, encrypted messaging and post-quantum cryptography, an umbrella term for encryption methods designed to resist attacks from future quantum computers.

Hardware wallets such as Ledger's are built to keep users' private keys offline, reducing exposure to online attacks. Those defenses are aimed at threats arriving over a network, however, while the implants at the center of the current episode were physically embedded in wallets before they reached buyers — a distribution-stage risk that offline key storage alone does not cover. Founded in Paris in 2014, Ledger is one of the most widely known hardware wallet makers, and its Nano series ranks among the most widely used crypto hardware wallets.

The announcement follows a security incident that surfaced on Friday involving malicious implants found in wallets sold through authorized reseller CryptoBilis. Ledger has requested that distributors in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong suspend sales of its products, and European retail chain MediaMarkt has also pulled Ledger wallets from its shelves.

Asked when Atom's anti-tampering protections were developed, a Ledger spokesperson said the work was not a response to isolated incidents. The spokesperson did not provide a development timeline.

In a separate blog post on Thursday, Ledger said it had introduced new rules requiring authorized resellers to keep devices off display and hand them to customers at purchase. The company also reiterated that returned devices must never be resold. The two rules govern the points in the retail chain where a device can be handled between Ledger and its final owner: display stock and customer returns. In the meantime, it remains unclear when distributors in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong will resume Ledger sales or whether MediaMarkt will restock the wallets.

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