The Lost Bitcoin Wallet and Recovery Efforts
In 2013, a cryptocurrency owner named “Michael” experienced a significant setback when he lost access to his Bitcoin. At that time, the 43.6 Bitcoin in his password-protected digital wallet were worth $5,300. The cause of this loss was a corrupted encrypted file containing the password, rendering the recovery seemingly impossible.
The Determination of Grand and Bruno
Despite the seemingly insurmountable challenge, two hackers named Grand and Bruno decided to take on the task of helping Michael recover his lost Bitcoin. They devoted months to reverse-engineering the RoboForm program, which was used to store the password.
Cracking the Password
Through their efforts, Grand and Bruno made a significant breakthrough. They discovered that the supposedly random passwords generated by RoboForm were linked to the computer’s date and time. Armed with this knowledge, they were able to narrow down the potential passwords based on the parameters that Michael may have used, such as character length and the absence of special characters.
One crucial piece of information that Michael provided was the date of a Bitcoin transaction he had made – April 14, 2013. He also mentioned that he did not use special characters in his passwords created in 2013. With this information, Grand and Bruno continued their relentless pursuit of the correct password.
Finally, in November 2021, after months of diligent work, Grand and Bruno cracked the password. It was generated on May 15, 2013, and their success led to Michael regaining access to his lost Bitcoin.
The Value of Bitcoin and Michael’s Decision
When Michael finally regained access to his wallet, the price of Bitcoin had skyrocketed. It was valued at $38,000. Instead of immediately selling his assets, Michael chose to wait for the price to reach $62,000 before making any transactions.
As a result, Michael now holds 30 BTC, which is worth over $2 million based on the current price of $67,543 per Bitcoin. His patience and strategic decision have paid off handsomely, turning his initial setback into a significant financial gain.
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