Michael Recovers His Lost Bitcoins After 11 Years
Michael, the owner of 43.6 bitcoins, has finally regained access to his digital wallet after 11 years, overcoming some complex obstacles. In 2013, he stored his bitcoins in a password-protected wallet generated using the RoboForm password manager. To enhance security, Michael encrypted the password in a file using the TrueCrypt tool instead of saving it directly in RoboForm.
Years later, the file containing the password became corrupted, leaving Michael locked out of his wallet. Desperate to recover his cryptocurrency assets in 2022, he sought the help of white hat hacker Joe Grand. Grand, along with his friend Bruno, managed to hack into the RoboForm software and recover the password after several months of reverse-engineering the 2013 version.
The hackers found a flaw in the random number generator used in the version of RoboForm Michael had used. By matching time parameters, they deduced that the password was created on May 15, 2013, the same day Michael transferred his bitcoins to the wallet. After checking numerous combinations, they were able to find the exact password and access the wallet.
As a reward for their efforts, Grand and Bruno kept a portion of the bitcoins, which were valued at around $38,000 per coin at the time. Michael waited for the price of bitcoin to rise to $62,000 before selling some of his assets, leaving him with 30 bitcoins worth $3 million.
