Hardware wallet lost with over $700Million worth Of Bitcoin

[bitterguy28]

i think you are quite confused mate a hardware wallet is an offline storage of your coins and he did not take a screenshot of his private keys nor did he save it in his email he stored it in a hard drive which is smart if only he took care of it well

he accidentally gave it away and it landed on a landfill and this was 12 years ago when bitcoin is not what it is right now so i can just imagine his regret but anyway cold or hot wallet both needs to be taken care of well

No I think is the other way round.
Reread the post and you would realised I'm talking about two different things.

I was emphasising on the fact that individuals that chose to keep/protect their private key do such with the aforementioned methods which I'm stating isn't safe.

not really much distinction since you shared news of someone who held his private keys in a hardware wallet and still lost it i assumed that that is what we are talking about especially there was no mention of keeping his private keys in screenshots or anywhere that could be accessed through the internet

even if we store our private keys in a hardware wallet, there are still ways for it to be accessed or lost albeit a lot harder than its online counterparts

[Ambatman]

[quote author=bitterguy28 link=topic=328026.msg1717870#msg1717870 

even if we store our private keys in a hardware wallet, there are still ways for it to be accessed or lost albeit a lot harder than its online counterparts
[/quote] You said private key instead of coins.
I guess it was a mistake since private keys are not saved in hardware wallet.

[Ambatman]

 
even if we store our private keys in a hardware wallet, there are still ways for it to be accessed or lost albeit a lot harder than its online counterparts

You said private key instead of coins.
I guess it was a mistake since private keys are not saved in hardware wallet.

[LogitechMouse]

well he can consider it a donation and his name will be forever on the internet about the guy who lost his drive with a ton of BTC. such as waste but it is what it is.

That isn't even considered a donation at all because nobody benefitted from it. A donation is you giving it to somebody else for his/her betterment. In this case, nothing benefitted, and it just got lost completely.
This incident has a huge lesson for us in terms of securing our cryptocurrencies. Owning isn't enough, but we need to properly secure it as well.

This case is a prime example of what can happen if we will not secure our private keys. He can continue recovering that hard drive, but things aren't favoring on him knowing that they want to turn it into a solar farm based on that article which complicates his search.

At the end of the day, self-custody means self-responsibility—without proper measurements, even millions in Bitcoin can be lost forever.

[Z-tight]

I think it's finally over for him, the city council has rejected his plea to go to the dumpster and search for his hard drive.

It has been over for him for a very long time, just that he vehemently refused to accept it, there was no way the authorities would have allowed him search the landfill for his hard drive, if they did they would be hit with numerous charges on the health dangers it pose to people living in the community nearby.

Even if James Howells found the hard drive, it must be damaged now and there is no way he would be able to read the data on it, he simply has to move on.

[libert19]

Many people take protection of private keys for granted either by screenshotting Or even saving them in emails.
Worse are the ones that believe that as long as they are with their phones they are still in control of their funds.

Yes, I know such people who screenshot sensitive stuff on their phone, or save on chatting apps or on notepads in their laptops instead of securing somewhere safe. I ask them what if phone/lappy fails, they reply we'll have it repaired and get data back.

[albon]

Many people take protection of private keys for granted either by screenshotting Or even saving them in emails.
Worse are the ones that believe that as long as they are with their phones they are still in control of their funds.

Of course you have the right way by this line to our wallet information should be stored on a specific device because if the mobile device is lost, the data of the wallet may be stolen. Only the mobile device can be at risk of keeping this information and the control of your wallet may be lost in the future. Crypto wallet is not a credible broker because it is not controlled by a financial authority with strict criteria. We will not open an account with them for ourselves. If you want to be safe only sign up with those brokers who are supervised by a top level and strict regulator. 

[God Of Thunder]

Even while using a non custodial wallet, if your seedphrase isn't properly secured, your funds are not in your control.

It is too late for people to realize this.
I never thought I would be hacked before I have been hacked. Everyone thinks they are safe and no one is watching them. I read about the $5 wrench attack. People can be in trouble in many ways. Writing a seed phrase on a piece of paper does not take hours. Storing it securely is most important. I wish people learn from other peoples mistake. But I myself did not learned from other cases.

[MrSpasybo]

After long 12 years, the popular saga of James Howells may have finally ended...and though I am feeling sorry for his failure to get back that hard drive with mined Bitcoin worth millions. I think the time has come for him to accept his fate as it would be so impossible to dig the thrash for it. At least, he made it to one of the many colorful personalities connected with Bitcoin. The biggest takeaway here is to never be lazy in securing everything you own most especially cryptocurrency as losing the key or seed phrases means losing access to something that is and will be so valuable. I am hoping that Quantum Computing will be the technology to get back the lost coins...though I am really also doubting it as it might create chaos in the market. Now, I am advising James Howells to instead capitalize on his story by licensing it to movies, books, documentaries and the likes as he can easily create a goldmine in there - and there is no more need to dig the heap of decades-old thrash.

Yeah, this is a good idea for James Howells to earn some income from his story. It's a sad story but it will also help many people understand what has happened in this market, the opportunity has come to all but most have missed it in one way or another.

I hope James Howells is still living well thanks to his own ability. He is a computer engineer and willing to access a new asset from 2013, he is not an ordinary person. In the future, he may have the right to search for his hard drive and we will have the opportunity to congratulate him!

[Z-tight]

Storing it securely is most important. I wish people learn from other peoples mistake. But I myself did not learned from other cases.

Yeah this is true, though the case op brought to us does not have to do with someone losing their funds through hacking. However, you are right, it is good to pay close attention to security, BTC tx's are irreversible and immutable, so one you lose your funds, it is gone forever, so better not to lose it and put more effort into security.

[robelneo]

He will forever regret this, but he will have to move. its a battle that is not worth fighting because of the many restrictions and legality; his battle now is accepting his fate that he will not recover it anymore; no one will completely lose.
Many also have lost their Bitcoin but this is the most celebrated because of the number; he is forever etched in the history of community as the guy who lost his 8000 Bitcoin in a local landfill.

[electronicash]

well he can consider it a donation and his name will be forever on the internet about the guy who lost his drive with a ton of BTC. such as waste but it is what it is.

That isn't even considered a donation at all because nobody benefitted from it. A donation is you giving it to somebody else for his/her betterment. In this case, nothing benefitted, and it just got lost completely.
This incident has a huge lesson for us in terms of securing our cryptocurrencies. Owning isn't enough, but we need to properly secure it as well.

This case is a prime example of what can happen if we will not secure our private keys. He can continue recovering that hard drive, but things aren't favoring on him knowing that they want to turn it into a solar farm based on that article which complicates his search.

At the end of the day, self-custody means self-responsibility—without proper measurements, even millions in Bitcoin can be lost forever.

okay. the market benefits since he is like holding it for a decade already like satoshi.  but then this will still not make him feel better.

He will forever regret this, but he will have to move. its a battle that is not worth fighting because of the many restrictions and legality; his battle now is accepting his fate that he will not recover it anymore; no one will completely lose.
Many also have lost their Bitcoin but this is the most celebrated because of the number; he is forever etched in the history of community as the guy who lost his 8000 Bitcoin in a local landfill.

it will forever be on the internet where some may call him the most unlucky guy who have no idea what he got until he lost the hard drive.

do you think someone out there found the drive? or maybe the mayor who first didn't allow him to dig the dirt tried to sabotage and find the hard drive for himself?

[Faisal2202]

Been there Before, mine was I lost my phone and was lucky that it was returned that's when I realised the irrelevant risk I have been taking.
What I do now is I usually delete my wallet app in case another gain access since I can tell roughly how much is in it through explorer.

Fortunately I did not lose my phone yet but one time not long ago, someone needed my phone to make call in office she was total stranger but I dialed and gave my phone to her the moment I gave her she vanished, I just looked away for 2 to 3 seconds and she was not there I panicked but I was relaxed a bit that her relative was sitting near me but I was still worried as she was not in my sight.

For 5 minutes she did not came back and I thought I am **ed but when she came back I asked actually not asked I had to show some of my anger haha as she did not had to go away without telling me just to talk in privacy haha.

The point is, we all have such moments when we thought we are going to face trouble now but fortunately we don't. Moments like these teaches me a lot and I become more aware of my surroundings for the next time. The fear of missing everything is like the big fear but I pray no one experience it. I also don't open my wallets outside my home even not talk to anyone not related about crypto life.

[Gurujebs]

Yes, I know such people who screenshot sensitive stuff on their phone, or save on chatting apps or on notepads in their laptops instead of securing somewhere safe. I ask them what if phone/lappy fails, they reply we'll have it repaired and get data back.

There is this one of my friend that started crypto recently, he got into airdrops and made some money but not claimed yet, he had his ssd change from small one to bigger one unfortunately he forgot he didn't back up his metamask seed phrase despite telling him to do so, he chatted me some days ago if there is a way he can have access to his wallet and I told him no.

This is the same person I thought everything, shown him everything and back up his first wallet he keep funds but he didn't do as I explained for him in airdrop. Now he has an airdrop he can't claim because he doesn't have access to his wallet. I guess the coin will be there forever.

[bhadz]

It is one of the nightmares of this man. He's never going to find his hardware wallet in the dumpster anymore. He has given up already and that's sad because even no matter what he offers to dumpsters management, he won't be given any chance for it because that's against their policies. And who knows after all of those years? That hardware wallet probably have been stomped and thrown somewhere else already.