Back when Bitcoin was worth only $5 a coin, Stefan Thomas was paid 7,002 of them for making a video explaining how the cryptocurrency worked, which was promptly stored in a digital wallet.
Thomas stored the private keys to access the wallet on a small hard drive, which was also password protected. That password, however, was written on a piece of paper and sadly lost.
The 7,002 Bitcoin are now worth more than $232 million and Thomas has just two attempts left to guess the password before it's encrypted and lost forever.
"I would just lay in bed and think about it," Thomas told The New York Times. "Then I would go to the computer with some new strategy, and it wouldn't work, and I would be desperate again."
Strangely, this is not the first time someone has lost millions of dollars worth of Bitcoin. Welshman James Howells accidentally threw out a hard drive filled with around $265 million worth of Bitcoin.
Howells has not given up his search in the local dump, hopeful that one day he will find his hard drive.
Is crypto coming back?
Cryptocurrencies closed out February largely unchanged after an enthusiastic rally kicked off 2023.
In February, Ether (ETH-USD), the market's second-largest cryptocurrency, outpaced its larger peer Bitcoin (BTC-USD) rising 1.6 per cent against Bitcoin's more modest 0.4 per cent increase during the month. In January, Bitcoin gained nearly 40 per cent to record its best start to a year since 2013.
Since the beginning of 2023, Bitcoin watchers have focused closely on whether Bitcoin's price could breach US$25,000.
Thomas tried his luck at guessing his password eight times, but none of these attempts were successful. Unluckily for the programmer, that means he had just two guesses left before his fortune was lost forever. Speaking to the New York Times back in 2021, he said: "I would just lay in bed and think about it.
They Cracked the Code to a Locked USB Drive Worth $235 Million in Bitcoin. Then It Got Weird. Stefan Thomas lost the password to an encrypted USB drive holding 7,002 bitcoins. One team of hackers believes they can unlock it—if they can get Thomas to let them.
However, millions have certainly been irretrievably lost. Cane Island investment manager Timothy Peterson has estimated that around six million BTC have been lost, a substantial chunk of Bitcoin's 21 million supply. If correct, this means that almost 30 percent of Bitcoin's supply has been lost forever.
James Howells, a British computer expert whose ex-partner accidentally discarded a drive containing 7,500 bitcoins (BTC), has initiated a legal action to compel Newport City Council to permit him to search a landfill where he believes the cryptocurrency is located.
As for his lost password and inaccessible Bitcoin, Mr. Thomas has put the IronKey in a secure facility — he won't say where — in case cryptographers come up with new ways of cracking complex passwords.
Bankman-Fried, 32, sentenced for fraud on customers of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded. Former crypto tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in United States federal prison for stealing $8bn from customers of the now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange he founded.
Juice Jacking is a type of cyber attack that occurs when you plug your device into a public USB charging port that has been tampered with. It usually results in your data being stolen or malware being installed on your mobile or laptop.
USB sticks are a common way hackers install ransomware and other types of malware. And if you're on a network, that malware can spread to other computers and even shut down the entire network.
Data security—Because removeable media devices are typically small and easy to transport, they can easily be lost or stolen. In fact, every time you allow an employee to use a USB flash drive or other small storage device, your organization's critical or sensitive information could fall into the wrong hands.
However, some estimates can be made based on blockchain data and surveys of Bitcoin holders. According to data from Bitinfocharts, as of March 2023, there are approximately 827,000 addresses that hold 1 bitcoin or more, representing around 4.5% of all addresses on the Bitcoin network.
Who owns the most Bitcoin in the world? The top Bitcoin holder is still believed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the anonymous creator of Bitcoin, who reportedly holds around 1.1 million BTC across many wallets. Despite this large holding, the top 10 holders collectively only possess about 5.5% of the total Bitcoin supply.
Limited Supply: Bitcoin has a maximum supply of 21 million coins, and as of March 2023, more than 19 million have been mined. Remaining bitcoins: There are approximately 2 million bitcoins left to be mined.
Bitcoin was created by an anonymous person or group using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. Nakamoto published a whitepaper titled "Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System," outlining the concept of a decentralized digital currency. 1 The true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains unknown to this day.
Secret bitcoin billionaire Jimmy Zhong lived a wild and crazy lifestyle - until he made a phone call that brought it all down. Secret bitcoin billionaire Jimmy Zhong lived a wild and crazy lifestyle - until he made a phone call that brought it all down.
In 2013, James Howells accidentally threw away a hard drive containing 7,500 Bitcoins, which would be worth over $500 million at today's price of $67,000 per Bitcoin. Despite his efforts to find the hard drive in a landfill, he has not been successful.
Crypto investor Stefan Thomas would have been sitting on a £200million fortune today if he hadn't forgotten his Bitcoin password in 2011. The German-born computer programmer lost a crucial piece of paper containing his password a decade ago - and he's been unable to access his savings ever since.
The 31-year-old was found guilty of fraud and money laundering last month. Prosecutors said the "strong public interest" in a resolution of their case against the former billionaire outweighed benefits of a second trial. He had faced six charges that had been separated from his first trial.
A bloke who is sitting on a crypto-currency fortune of £200 million is unable to access his dosh after forgetting his password. Stefan Thomas lost a piece of paper containing his password a decade ago and since then has been completely unable to access his fortune.
It led to Armstrong creating his own cryptocurrency called $BEN coin in mid-2023. But he was ousted from the BitBoy world shortly after that token's launch over "serious and personal allegations," according to Decrypt. Armstrong later sued the company that owns the brand.
Introduction: My name is Kareem Mueller DO, I am a vivacious, super, thoughtful, excited, handsome, beautiful, combative person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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