Description

Security researchers discovered a malicious Chrome extension impersonating the popular crypto wallet platform imToken. The extension disguises itself as a harmless browser utility but actually redirects users to phishing pages designed to steal cryptocurrency wallet seed phrases and private keys. Once the credentials are captured, attackers can immediately take control of the victim’s wallet and transfer funds. The malicious extension, named “lmToken Chromophore,” was identified by Socket’s Threat Research Team. Although it claims to function as a hex color visualization tool, the extension performs no legitimate feature once installed. Instead, it operates as a redirector that automatically sends users to attacker-controlled phishing infrastructure. The extension retrieves a target destination from a hardcoded endpoint hosted on JSONKeeper, enabling threat actors to dynamically change the phishing site without modifying the extension itself. When triggered, it opens a tab pointing to a deceptive domain resembling the Chrome Web Store interface. The page mimics the legitimate imToken wallet import screen and asks users to enter either a 12- or 24-word mnemonic seed phrase or their private key. To evade detection, the attackers employ mixed-script Unicode homoglyphs, replacing Latin characters with visually similar Greek or Cyrillic characters in the domain and interface. After victims submit their wallet secrets, the phishing workflow shows a fake upgrade process and then redirects them to the legitimate token.im website, making the attack less noticeable while attackers drain the compromised wallets.