Part of the CustodyStress archive of observed Bitcoin custody incidents
Device loss
Cases in this category involve devices that were lost, destroyed, or otherwise became inaccessible. Where no independent recovery path — seed phrase, wallet backup, or documented recovery procedure — existed, access could not be recovered.
Device loss is one of the most common Bitcoin custody stress conditions in this archive. Across observed cases, the outcome depends primarily on whether an independent recovery path existed at the time of loss. Where a seed phrase or wallet backup was stored separately from the device, custody typically survived the loss event. Where no independent backup existed, access was permanently blocked.
188 observed cases
Blocked
133 (71%)
Constrained
5 (3%)
Survives
49 (26%)
Indeterminate
1 (1%)
Device lost — software wallet (2015)
Mobile or software wallet
A documented November 2015 case describes a user who kept their wallet on a tablet that was destroyed when their car was broken into and the bag containing the
Border confiscation — Trezor (2015)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A Trezor user's device was confiscated by customs officers at an international border crossing in May 2015. The customs authority claimed the device could be us
A Ledger hardware wallet user lost their device in a house move in August 2015.
Hardware wallet (single key)
A Ledger hardware wallet user lost their device in a house move in August 2015. They had the recovery seed stored separately and were able to restore their wall
Device lost — hardware wallet 2014
Hardware wallet (single key)
A Bitcoin holder who purchased one of the first Trezor hardware wallets in 2014 stored their recovery seed in a safety deposit box in a bank that subsequently m
When the laptop was stolen in January 2014, they realised they had never enabled
Mobile or software wallet
A user who had been mining Bitcoin since 2010 stored their accumulated wallet on an old laptop. When the laptop was stolen in January 2014, they realised they h
Among the stolen items was a USB drive containing their Bitcoin wallet backup.
Mobile or software wallet
A forum case from February 2014 describes a user whose apartment was burgled during the Mt. Gox crisis. Among the stolen items was a USB drive containing their
The laptop was lost during a house move in March 2014.
Mobile or software wallet
A Bitcoin holder who lost their laptop in the chaos of the Mt. Gox crisis — rushing to move coins from a now-inaccessible exchange to self-custody — discovered
Device lost — software wallet 2014
Mobile or software wallet
A Bitcoin miner who had accumulated coins since 2011 stored their wallet file on an external hard drive that was damaged in a fire at their workplace in March 2
Device lost — software wallet 2014
Mobile or software wallet
A documented 2014 case involves a user who stored their wallet on a smartphone that was dropped into water. The device was not water resistant. The wallet had n
Their home suffered a fire significant enough to compromise the safe's contents.
Mobile or software wallet
A Bitcoin developer who used a dedicated old Android phone as a hardware wallet stored it in a fireproof safe at home. In May 2014 their home suffered a fire si
Device lost — Bitcoin Core (2014)
Mobile or software wallet
A 2014 forum case documents a user whose desktop computer suffered a failed hard drive in June 2014. The user had stored their Bitcoin Core wallet exclusively o
The server's SSD failed due to heat damage in summer 2014.
Mobile or software wallet
A documented forum case from July 2014 describes a user who had been mining Bitcoin since 2012 and kept all their coins on their home server. The server's SSD f
The wallet.dat file stored on the NAS was the only copy.
Mobile or software wallet
A forum thread from August 2014 describes a user whose NAS (network attached storage) device failed following a power surge during a thunderstorm. The wallet.da
When they were unexpectedly terminated in September 2014 the employer's IT department
Mobile or software wallet
A 2014 documented case describes a user who kept their wallet exclusively on a workplace computer. When they were unexpectedly terminated in September 2014 the
The drawer's contents were destroyed in the flood.
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2014 forum case describes one of the earliest documented hardware wallet (Trezor, then newly released) loss incidents. A user's Trezor was damaged in a flood.
Device lost — software wallet (2014)
Mobile or software wallet
A university student who had been mining Bitcoin since 2012 stored their wallet on a laptop that was confiscated by university IT security following an unrelate
Device lost — software wallet 2013
Mobile or software wallet
A user who had been mining Bitcoin through 2012 performed a clean OS reinstall in early 2013 without first exporting the wallet.dat file from the AppData direct
Device lost — software wallet 2013
Mobile or software wallet
A user's hard drive failed in 2013 due to a mechanical failure. The wallet.dat was on the failed drive and no offsite backup existed. A backup drive also stored
The BTC remained in on-chain addresses but the private keys were permanently lost.
Mobile or software wallet
A user whose home was flooded in 2013 lost a computer containing their Bitcoin wallet. Water damage destroyed the drive platters before the device could be reco
In 2013 the instance was terminated due to an unpaid hosting bill.
Mobile or software wallet
A user stored their Bitcoin wallet backup on a cloud virtual machine. In 2013 the instance was terminated due to an unpaid hosting bill. All data including the
In the process a USB drive containing a wallet backup was packed and subsequently lost.
Mobile or software wallet
A user who had accumulated BTC through mining in 2010 and 2011 moved house in 2013. In the process a USB drive containing a wallet backup was packed and subsequ
The BTC addresses remained visible on the blockchain but unspendable.
Mobile or software wallet
A user who kept their wallet.dat on an encrypted external hard drive lost the drive at some point during 2013. They had recorded the encryption key securely, bu
The wallet.dat had been in the default Bitcoin data directory which was overwritten.
Mobile or software wallet
A user who had been using a shared workplace computer for Bitcoin mining in 2012 found in 2013 that the employer had wiped and redeployed the machine. The walle
Device discarded — software wallet (2013)
Mobile or software wallet
A UK-based user discarded an old laptop in 2013 during a home clearout without realising it still contained a Bitcoin wallet. The laptop was collected with hous
Destroyed by lightning — Bitcoin-Qt (2013)
Mobile or software wallet
A user who stored their Bitcoin-Qt wallet on a desktop computer that was struck by lightning in 2013 lost the device entirely. No backup existed offsite. The su
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