Part of the CustodyStress archive of observed Bitcoin custody incidents
Hardware wallet (single key)
Cases in this category involve single-key hardware wallets. The device holds the private key offline. Recovery depends entirely on whether an independent seed phrase backup exists.
Hardware wallets appear in a large share of device-loss cases. The device itself is replaceable — the seed phrase restores access to any compatible wallet. Cases that resulted in blocked access share a common factor: no seed phrase backup existed, or the backup was stored with the device and lost alongside it.
274 observed cases
Blocked
100 (36%)
Constrained
45 (16%)
Survives
86 (31%)
Indeterminate
43 (16%)
Hidden wallet discovered — hardware wallet (2023)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2023 case involved a Bitcoin holder who developed early-onset dementia and whose family was unable to obtain access to hardware wallets before the holder lost
Hidden wallet discovered — hardware wallet (2023)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2023 estate case widely referenced in digital asset legal commentary involved a software engineer who had accumulated Bitcoin since 2014 and maintained a soph
Device lost — Ledger Nano X (2023)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A hardware wallet owner reported in 2023 that their Ledger Nano X had malfunctioned and displayed a corrupted firmware screen, refusing to complete the boot seq
Owner death — hardware wallet (2023)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2023 survey of estate planning attorneys specialising in digital assets found that cases of Bitcoin lost at death continued to accumulate. A common pattern in
Device discarded — hardware wallet (2023)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2023 case highlighted a recurring pattern: a Bitcoin holder who had purchased in 2017 at the height of a bull run had stored their seed phrase inside a person
Recovery services and wallet manufacturers noted an increase in support requests in Q3
Hardware wallet (single key)
In the rush to move funds off exchanges following the Celsius and Voyager collapses in mid-2022, a documented cohort of users set up self-custody wallets hastil
Passphrase unavailable — hardware wallet 2022
Hardware wallet (single key)
A user who had set a complex BIP39 passphrase in 2019 attempted to access their hardware wallet in July 2022 to move funds off exchanges following the Celsius c
Recovery service providers noted an increase in cases where users had improperly
Hardware wallet (single key)
In the months following the Celsius and Voyager collapses, a documented surge in interest in self-custody led many users to transfer funds from exchanges to har
Physical coercion — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A Canadian crypto trader was kidnapped and held for ransom in August 2022, with his abductors demanding a cryptocurrency transfer as the ransom. The case was in
The owner had 10 USD in the standard wallet but substantial holdings in
Hardware wallet (single key)
A case documented by KeychainX in August 2022 described a client who had forgotten the passphrase to a hidden wallet on a Trezor hardware device. The owner had
Seed phrase unavailable — hardware wallet 2022
Hardware wallet (single key)
A pattern documented in 2022 involved hardware wallet users who had stored their seed phrase backup in a fireproof safe but found the paper illegible after a ho
A couple in Russia were ambushed by six men during breakfast at their home.
Hardware wallet (single key)
In September 2022, a couple in Russia were ambushed by six men during breakfast at their home. The attackers coerced the couple into immediately transferring cr
When the husband died unexpectedly in 2022, the wife found multiple hardware devices
Hardware wallet (single key)
A husband and wife co-managed a Bitcoin holding using a multisignature wallet setup designed by the husband without fully explaining the structure to his wife.
The user offered a 4 BTC reward to anyone who could assist with recovery.
Hardware wallet (single key)
A BitcoinTalk forum user (Splashboard) posted in November 2022 that they had forgotten the passphrase to a Trezor hardware wallet and were locked out of their B
The passphrase—which they had set only 12 months earlier—could not be recalled.
Hardware wallet (single key)
A user who had set up a hardware wallet in late 2021 during the Bitcoin price peak attempted to access it in December 2022 to sell during the market downturn. T
Ledger and Trezor both reported record sales in the second half of 2022.
Hardware wallet (single key)
In the wake of the 2022 exchange collapses, self-custody hardware wallet sales surged significantly. Ledger and Trezor both reported record sales in the second
During the approximately ten days between the device being damaged and the replacement
Hardware wallet (single key)
A hardware wallet was damaged beyond repair in a house move when a packing box containing electronic devices was crushed. The owner had the seed phrase secured
Seed phrase unavailable — hardware wallet 2022
Hardware wallet (single key)
A Trezor forum user reported in early 2022 that they had transferred substantial Bitcoin from a Ledger to a Trezor Safe 3, set up a hidden wallet with a passphr
Estate access failure — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
Estate planning attorneys documented an increase in cases in 2022 of heirs attempting to access Bitcoin wallets belonging to deceased family members. In many ca
Owner death — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2022 case involved a deceased who had held Bitcoin on multiple wallets across multiple hardware devices, none of which were documented. The executor found thr
Owner incapacity — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
Estate planning and digital asset attorneys reported in 2022 that a growing pattern involved Bitcoin holders who became incapacitated—through accident, illness,
Hidden wallet discovered — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A July 2022 incident in Spain recorded in the Lopp physical attacks database involved a Bitcoin holder forced to transfer funds at gunpoint by attackers who had
Sanctions lockout — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
On 8 August 2022, OFAC sanctioned Tornado Cash, a smart contract-based cryptocurrency mixer, making it illegal for US persons to interact with the protocol. Sev
Owner death — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A 2022 estate case involved a man who had accumulated Bitcoin since 2014 and used a complex self-custody setup involving a hardware wallet, a passphrase, and a
Physical coercion — hardware wallet (2022)
Hardware wallet (single key)
A gang operating across multiple US states conducted a series of crypto-targeted home invasions in late 2022, entering homes of known crypto holders—identified
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