Sweeper Bot on Trust Wallet, Ledger & Rabby: Rescue Steps

Q: Can a Ledger hardware wallet have a sweeper bot without my 24 words being stolen?

Only if you physically approved a malicious EIP-7702 authorization on the Ledger device (which attaches smart-contract sweeper code directly to your address) or signed an infinite token approval. Otherwise, if unauthorized native ETH transfers are being signed from your Ledger address automatically, your 24-word backup phrase was exposed outside the device.

Q: Why can't I sign a Flashbots rescue bundle directly on my physical Ledger USB device?

A Flashbots rescue bundle (eth_sendBundle) must be re-signed and re-submitted for every new 12-second Ethereum block (often updating maxFeePerGas and target block timestamps in under 100 milliseconds), and requires raw signed transaction hex (eth_signTransaction / offline signing) which standard browser WebHID connections and Ledger Live do not expose fast enough for contested block-0 rescues.

By Merunas Grincalaitis, founder of MEV DAO and a developer who builds MEV, sniping and trading bots on Ethereum. Last updated: October 2026.

TL;DR: A sweeper bot on Trust Wallet, Ledger, or Rabby lives on the Ethereum network watching your public address and compromised private key—not inside your mobile app or hardware dongle. That means reinstalling Trust Wallet or buying a new Ledger device using the same 12/24-word recovery phrase will not stop the sweeper bot. To save stuck tokens, staked ETH, or NFTs, you must never send gas ETH to the wallet through the app UI; instead, move all un-drained accounts on that seed to a brand-new seed phrase first, then export the single compromised raw hex private key to run an atomic Flashbots bundle (eth_sendBundle) or EIP-7702 rescue.

When victims discover that any ETH they send into their wallet disappears in two seconds, they usually search for their specific wallet brand: sweeper bot trust wallet, sweeper bot ledger, or sweeper bot rabby. Many assume the Trust Wallet mobile app itself has a virus, or wonder how a sweeper bot ledger attack is even possible on a cold hardware wallet.

Because an Ethereum rescue script requires a raw 64-character hexadecimal private key (0x...) to sign an offline Flashbots bundle—whereas Trust Wallet and Ledger only show you a 12-word or 24-word BIP-39 mnemonic phrase—here are the exact wallet-specific steps to diagnose the compromise, protect your other accounts, derive the exact private key safely, and rescue your remaining tokens.

Why wallet apps can't bypass a sweeper bot (Trust Wallet vs. Ledger vs. Rabby)

First, understand where a sweeper bot crypto script actually operates: it runs on the attacker's server connected to an Ethereum node.

Whenever you open Trust Wallet, Ledger Live, or Rabby and try to send 0.005 ETH to your drained address to pay gas for moving an ERC-20 token, your wallet app broadcasts that ETH transfer to the public Ethereum network. Once that block is mined, the attacker's server sees balance > 0 and immediately signs a transfer using your leaked private key (or triggers a malicious EIP-7702 delegation) to steal the ETH before you can click "Send Token" in your wallet UI.

No setting inside the Trust Wallet mobile app, Ledger Live, or Rabby browser extension can bundle a gas transfer from Wallet A and a token transfer from Wallet B into a single atomic block. Only a Flashbots bundle (eth_sendBundle) or EIP-7702 sponsored rescue transaction can do that.

Wallet-by-wallet diagnosis: How did the sweeper get on Trust Wallet, Ledger, or Rabby?

Wallet Brand	Most Common Cause of Sweeper Bot	BIP-44 Derivation Path (Ethereum)	How to Export the Raw `0x` Private Key for a Flashbots Rescue
Trust Wallet (`sweeper bot trust wallet`)	iCloud/Google Drive backup breach, screenshot of 12-word phrase, or pasting seed into a fake support/airdrop form	`m/44'/60'/0'/0/0` (Standard BIP-44 index 0)	Import the compromised 12-word phrase into Rabby or Foundry `cast wallet derive-private-key` on an offline machine to get the `0x...` hex key.
Ledger (`sweeper bot ledger`)	Typing the 24-word recovery sheet into a fake "Ledger Live Update" app, storing the 24 words digitally, or signing a malicious EIP-7702 / Permit2 payload	`m/44'/60'/0'/0/0` (Ledger Live) or `m/44'/60'/0'/0` (Legacy MEW)	Evacuate all other coins/accounts on the 24-word seed FIRST! Then derive the single compromised `0x...` key using offline Ian Coleman BIP-39 or `cast wallet`.
Rabby Wallet (`sweeper bot rabby`)	Info-stealer malware on Windows/macOS (`Lumma`, `Atomic Stealer`), leaked `.env` key, or malicious EIP-7702 signature	`m/44'/60'/0'/0/i`	Click More → Export Private Key inside Rabby for that specific compromised address (on a clean machine).

Step 1: Dealing with a `sweeper bot trust wallet` compromise

Trust Wallet mobile users face two specific hurdles when hit by a sweeper bot on Trust Wallet:

Multi-chain seed exposure: Trust Wallet generates a single 12-word secret phrase that controls your Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain (BSC), Base, Arbitrum, Polygon, Bitcoin, and Solana addresses simultaneously. If a sweeper bot is draining your ETH on Ethereum mainnet, the attacker already has your 12-word phrase and will also sweep your BNB on BSC and tokens on Base. Immediately create a brand-new wallet with a new 12/24-word seed on a clean device and move any untouched balances on other chains before touching the Ethereum address!
Trust Wallet Mobile only shows the 12 words, not the 0x hex private key: To run our MEV DAO Sweeper Bot Rescue Service or open-source Flashbots script, you need the 64-character hex private key (0x...) for that Ethereum address.
- How to get it safely (after evacuating other accounts on that seed): Run cast wallet private-key --mnemonic "your twelve words here" --mnemonic-index 0 using Foundry CLI locally, or import the compromised 12-word phrase into a disposable Rabby/MetaMask profile on a clean machine and click Export Private Key.

Step 2: How can a `sweeper bot ledger` attack happen on a hardware wallet?

Victims are often shocked when they experience a sweeper bot on Ledger. How can a cold hardware wallet have a sweeper bot watching it?

There are only two ways a Ledger address ends up with an active sweeper:

Case A: Your 24-word Ledger recovery phrase leaked outside the device

The Ledger Secure Element chip was not hacked over USB. Instead, at some point the 24-word paper backup was photographed, typed into a fake "Ledger Live synchronization / firmware recovery" phishing app, or stored in a cloud note.

CRITICAL WARNING BEFORE RESCUING: A 24-word Ledger phrase derives your Bitcoin (m/84'/0'/0'), Solana, XRP, and secondary Ethereum accounts (Account 2, Account 3). Before you ever type those 24 words into a tool to extract the compromised Ethereum private key for a Flashbots rescue, transfer 100% of your Bitcoin, Solana, and untouched Ethereum accounts to a brand-new seed phrase!
Once every other account on that 24-word seed is completely empty, derive the raw hex private key for the compromised Ethereum index (m/44'/60'/0'/0/0 for Ledger Live) using cast wallet private-key so the Flashbots rescue bundle can sign the ERC-20/staking recovery transactions in milliseconds (a physical Ledger USB button click takes 3–8 seconds per tx, which is too slow for multi-block contested rescues and does not support raw offline bundle signing across all relays).

Case B: Your 24 words did NOT leak, but you signed a malicious EIP-7702 or Permit2 payload on your Ledger!

If you blindly approved a signature on your Ledger screen while visiting a phishing site, you may have signed an EIP-7702 delegation (0xef0100...) or an infinite Permit2 / ERC-20 approval.

Check your address on Etherscan first! If Etherscan shows "Delegated to...", read How to Check and Remove a Malicious EIP-7702 Delegation.
If the drain happened via transferFrom called by an external spender, your Ledger seed is still safe—just revoke the approval immediately using How to Revoke Token Approvals and Permit2 Signatures!

Step 3: Rescuing tokens from a `sweeper bot rabby` wallet

Rabby Wallet is the best day-to-day EVM wallet for security warnings, because it clearly displays token approval balances and simulates transactions before you sign. However, if your laptop gets infected with an info-stealer Trojan (often from a fake cracks installer, fake Zoom/Calendly link, or malicious GitHub repo) or you pasted your seed phrase on a phishing page, a sweeper bot rabby script will drain your ETH.

Wipe or switch computers first: If Rabby was drained without you signing a phishing transaction, assume your computer has an active info-stealer reading your browser extension storage. Switch to a clean machine immediately!
Export the single compromised 0x key: In Rabby, click the address → Export Private Key to copy the 64-character hex string.
Execute the atomic Flashbots / EIP-7702 rescue: Use our compromised-wallet-sweeper-rescue GitHub repo and follow How to Rescue Tokens From a Compromised Wallet With a Sweeper Bot (Flashbots Guide) or EIP 7702 Rescue vs Flashbots Bundles: Saving Tokens.

Frequently asked questions

Does deleting and reinstalling the Trust Wallet app remove a sweeper bot?

No. A sweeper bot is not malware inside the Trust Wallet phone app; it is an external program running on the hacker's server using a copy of your leaked 12-word recovery phrase. Reinstalling Trust Wallet with the same 12 words connects you right back to the same compromised address.

How do I get the private key from a Trust Wallet 12-word phrase to run a Flashbots rescue?

First move any untouched funds on other chains (BTC, SOL, BNB, Base) to a brand-new wallet seed. Then derive the Ethereum private key (m/44'/60'/0'/0/0) by running cast wallet private-key --mnemonic "your 12 words" in Foundry CLI or by importing the 12 words into Rabby/MetaMask on a clean computer and clicking Export Private Key.

Can a Ledger hardware wallet have a sweeper bot without my 24 words being stolen?

Only if you physically approved a malicious EIP-7702 authorization on the Ledger device (which attaches smart-contract sweeper code directly to your address) or signed an infinite token approval. Otherwise, if unauthorized native ETH transfers are being signed from your Ledger address automatically, your 24-word backup phrase was exposed outside the device.

Why can't I sign a Flashbots rescue bundle directly on my physical Ledger USB device?

A Flashbots rescue bundle (eth_sendBundle) must be re-signed and re-submitted for every new 12-second Ethereum block (often updating maxFeePerGas and target block timestamps in under 100 milliseconds), and requires raw signed transaction hex (eth_signTransaction / offline signing) which standard browser WebHID connections and Ledger Live do not expose fast enough for contested block-0 rescues.

Can MEV DAO help me rescue tokens stuck in a compromised Trust Wallet, Ledger, or Rabby address?

Yes. Our MEV DAO Sweeper Bot Rescue Service supports rescuing ERC-20 tokens, staked ETH, airdrops, and NFTs from any compromised EVM address via atomic Flashbots + EIP-7702 bundles.

Related guides

Stuck with a sweeper bot on Trust Wallet, Ledger, Rabby, or MetaMask? Rescue your remaining tokens, staked positions, and NFTs using the MEV DAO Token Rescue Bot with a 3-day free trial at mevdao.org/subscribe, or message me directly on Telegram (@merunas) for step-by-step help.