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 (2013)
Mobile or software wallet
A user's mobile phone containing a Bitcoin mobile wallet app was damaged beyond repair in 2013. The user had not backed up the wallet seed displayed during setu
The laptop contained the only copy of their Bitcoin-Qt wallet.
Mobile or software wallet
A Bitcoin miner whose home was burgled in summer 2013 had their laptop taken. The laptop contained the only copy of their Bitcoin-Qt wallet. The machine was not
Drive wiped without backup — software wallet (2013)
Mobile or software wallet
A user who had accumulated BTC through early faucet use and small trades in 2011–12 had their only backup on a USB drive attached to a keyring that was lost in
Device lost — software wallet 2013
Mobile or software wallet
A user who maintained their wallet exclusively on a Raspberry Pi single-board computer found in September 2013 that an SD card failure had corrupted the operati
James Howells, an IT worker from Newport, Wales, accidentally discarded a hard drive
Mobile or software wallet
In November 2013 James Howells, an IT worker from Newport, Wales, accidentally discarded a hard drive containing 8,000 BTC he had mined in 2009. The drive was d
Laptop stolen — Bitcoin-Qt (2013)
Mobile or software wallet
A user's laptop containing the only copy of their Bitcoin-Qt wallet.dat was stolen in 2013. The hard drive was encrypted but the theft meant the wallet was phys
A user's laptop containing a Bitcoin Core wallet file was stolen.
Mobile or software wallet
A user's laptop containing a Bitcoin Core wallet file was stolen. No backup of the wallet.dat file had been made. Without the private keys, the user had no mean
The user reported the loss on Bitcoin forums.
Mobile or software wallet
A user's hard drive failed and the wallet.dat file was not recoverable. No backup had been created. The user reported the loss on Bitcoin forums. The funds were
Device lost — software wallet 2012
Mobile or software wallet
A user recovered a wallet.dat backup file after hardware failure but could not remember the encryption password. The wallet had been encrypted as a security mea
Device lost — software wallet 2012
Mobile or software wallet
A user sent a computer for repair and the technician reformatted the drive, overwriting the wallet.dat file. The user had not backed up the wallet before sendin
An early Bitcoin miner's primary mining computer experienced hard drive failure.
Mobile or software wallet
An early Bitcoin miner's primary mining computer experienced hard drive failure. The accumulated mining rewards, stored in a wallet on the same drive, were lost
A user reinstalled their operating system and lost access to their Multibit wallet.
Mobile or software wallet
A user reinstalled their operating system and lost access to their Multibit wallet. The wallet data directory was not backed up before the reinstall. After rein
Device lost — software wallet 2012
Mobile or software wallet
A user had backed up their wallet.dat to an external drive, but the backup was from several months prior. After the primary drive failed, only a partial wallet
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