The user had a list of approximately 20 candidate passphrases from their habits at

Survives

Case description

A Bitcoin holder who had used Electrum with a custom seed extension (additional passphrase) in 2016 attempted to restore the wallet in October 2022 and discovered the seed extension was not recorded anywhere accessible. The seed phrase was correctly backed up but without the extension the wallet appeared empty. The user had a list of approximately 20 candidate passphrases from their habits at the time. A recovery service built a custom script to test all variations and recovered the wallet on the 14th attempt.

Custody context

Stress condition	Passphrase unavailable
Custody system	Desktop Software Wallet
Outcome	Survives
Documentation	Unknown
Year observed	2022
Country	International

Structural dependencies observed

Technical specialist required

Outcome interpretation

Access remained possible under the reported conditions.

Source

Privately Reported

Evidence type

News article

Evidence link

https://rewallet.com/blog/bitcoin-core-forgotten-password/

Related cases involving passphrase unavailable

217 cases involve passphrase unavailable 25 cases involve desktop software wallet View archive statistics →

This archive documents observed custody survivability failures. It does not attempt to document all Bitcoin losses or security incidents. Submit a case

← All cases

Framework references

Where Bitcoin Custody Intersects Legal and Fiduciary Authority

Where custody creates gaps in estate planning, fiduciary duty, and professional responsibility.

Professional Scope Boundary Matrix

What each professional or product covers, what they do not, and where gaps form between them.

The Independent Assessment Layer in Bitcoin Custody

How independent diagnostic layers emerge when multiple parties depend on shared infrastructure.