One Fifth of Bitcoin is Lost…Can We Get It Back?
For most people, a forgotten password is a minor nuisance that may force them to spend 5-10 minutes having it reset. For Bitcoin HODLers, it can be the difference between rags and riches. Many people would consider hackers to be the biggest threat to their crypto, when it may in fact be themselves.
In November 2017, Blockchain intelligence platform Chainanalysis did a study and revealed that 20% of Bitcoin currently in circulation has been lost to the tune of about $25 billion. In may, Bitstamp urged people to treat their crypto with the same cautiousness as they would with an asset such as gold. Much of the lost $25 billion is due to negligence in terms of storage. A forgotten password here, a misplaced thumb-drive there; it adds up to a whole lot of lost crypto. Many people who have lost crypto through improper storage have gone to great lengths to get it back, and the crazy thing is…it sometimes actually works.
Individuals and companies have emerged to try and help those who have thrown away their crypto fortunes, for a fee of course. If you are someone who has forgotten the password to their crypto wallet, then Wallet Recovery Services may be for you. It is a small company (4 employees) that gets as much personal information from the client, and then uses it to try and use a brute force decryption on crypto wallets. The company charges 20% of any coins it recovers, but the process is slow and so far only around 30% successful.
Another option would be the company We Recover Data. The company began as a resource to help corporations recover lost or damaged data and still uses those same skills to serve those who have lost their cryptocurrency. They have a varying rate depending on the amount and difficulty of the crypto in question, but it may be worth it, as they boast a 95% success rate.
If you’ve tried the traditional methods, and are willing to try something outside the box, then hypnosis may the the solution to remembering your forgotten passwords. Jason Miller, a hypnotist located in South Carolina, has begun using his skills as a hypnotist to manipulate his client’s memories in order to reveal the repressed information in their subconscious that will reveal the information that they need to know.
“Everybody has a photographic memory. With skilled hypnotic regression, you can access that photograph.” Miller says about his services, that have so far had a 50% success rate. He charges .5 Bitcoin up front and 5% fee of whatever is recovered.
Some of these methods may work in getting back your lost crypto, but remember to be proactive in storing your crypto in a secure location (whether physical or digital), and making sure you can find your passwords if they slip your mind. By doing this you can rest easy knowing that you don’t have to go to the trouble of paying someone else to find it.
