CustodyStress
Archive › Owner incapacity
Part of the CustodyStress archive of observed Bitcoin custody incidents
CS-00098

Gox and, being unable to communicate, could not direct family members to attempt

Blocked
Case description
A Bitcoin enthusiast was hospitalised in February 2014 just as the Mt. Gox crisis unfolded. They held a significant balance on Mt. Gox and, being unable to communicate, could not direct family members to attempt withdrawal during the brief window before the 7 February withdrawal halt. By the time they recovered, withdrawals were permanently frozen.
Custody context
Stress conditionOwner incapacity
Custody systemExchange custody
OutcomeBlocked
DocumentationUnknown
Year observed2014
CountryUnknown
Structural dependencies observed
Single point of failureHardware device required
What this illustrates
There was only one way in. When that path was gone, so was access. Access was not recoverable.
Outcome interpretation
Access was not possible under the reported conditions.
Source
Publicly Reported
Evidence type
Forum post
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Framework references
Terms guide
Survives
Access remained possible under the reported conditions.
Constrained
Access remained possible, but only with delay, dependence, or significant difficulty.
Blocked
Access was not possible under the reported conditions.
Indeterminate
There was not enough information to determine the outcome.
Single-person knowledge
Recovery depended on information or capability held by one individual who was unavailable.
Institutional dependence
Recovery depended on a third-party institution or service that was inaccessible or uncooperative.
Documentation gap
Recovery depended on instructions that were missing, incomplete, or unclear.
Authority mismatch
The person with legal authority to act did not have operational access, or vice versa.