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<p class="is-style-lead">Crypto entrepreneur faces a $243 million Bitcoin dilemma, with just two password attempts left and a reluctant decision on accepting Unciphered’s hacking expertise.</p>
<p>Over the years, the crypto industry has seen many stories of users buying thousands of <a href="https://crypto.news/bitcoin-faces-selling-pressure-as-whale-activity-hikes/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Bitcoins</a> over a decade ago, when it was worth merely $10-$13, only to lose access to their wallet today when the leading cryptocurrency is worth 3,000 times more. The story of Stefan Thomas, a Swiss crypto entrepreneur, follows a similar plot but has come across a rather surprising turning point.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas holds 7,002 Bitcoins in an IronKey USB, which is a portable USB storage with secured encryption. These assets are worth more than $243 million today. However in a rather unfortunate scenario, Thomas has lost his password and only has two password attempts left before the USB drive erases the Bitcoin wallet keys. The only one that can help Thomas is <a href="https://www.unciphered.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Unciphered</a>, a hacker group that has developed a technique to crack the passwords of IronKey S200 devices. The only problem is that Thomas doesn’t want their help.&nbsp;</p>
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   <p lang="en" dir="ltr">In 2011, Stefan Thomas lost the password to an IronKey S200, an encrypted USB drive holding 7,002 bitcoins. IronKeys are designed to permanently erase their contents if someone tries ten incorrect password guesses, and Thomas has already tried eight wrong ones. <br><br>🎥 Unciphered <a href="https://t.co/gK80KJQ9GJ" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pic.twitter.com/gK80KJQ9GJ</a></p>— WIRED (@WIRED) <a href="https://twitter.com/WIRED/status/1716968080113533415?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">October 25, 2023</a>
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<p>You might also like: <a href="https://crypto.news/scammer-steals-743k-in-fake-linea-token-rug-pull/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Scammer steals $743k in fake Linea token rug pull </a></p>
<p>IronKeys are designed to permanently erase their contents after ten incorrect password guesses. Unciphered’s hackers have confirmed to the <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/unciphered-ironkey-password-cracking-bitcoin/#:~:text=Stefan%20Thomas%20lost%20the%20password,get%20Thomas%20to%20let%20them" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">WIRED</a> that they can bypass this limitation, giving them virtually infinite tries to guess the password. They’ve demonstrated their capabilities, unlocking an IronKey in what they dubbed “Project Everest.”&nbsp;</p>
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   <p lang="en" dir="ltr">We've gotten a lot of request to know where we got the idea to call our IronKey project for Stefan Thomas Project: EVEREST.<a href="https://t.co/0y8NUWkJCI" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://t.co/0y8NUWkJCI</a><br><br>Great scene in Mission Impossible 1 <a href="https://t.co/UO4Bd5QzKP" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pic.twitter.com/UO4Bd5QzKP</a></p>— Unciphered LLC (@uncipheredLLC) <a href="https://twitter.com/uncipheredLLC/status/1717221411385757728?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">October 25, 2023</a>
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<p>Despite Unciphered’s success and offer to help, Thomas has declined their assistance, remaining committed to two other teams he had engaged earlier. Unciphered has not disclosed the specifics of their cracking technique due to potential national security implications. They have managed to decrypt 2011-era IronKeys more than a thousand times, demonstrating a non-destructive, reliable method.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Despite their technological triumph, convincing Thomas to use their services has proven to be a challenge, leaving Unciphered with a powerful decryption tool but no agreement to unlock the high-value cryptocurrency treasure.</p>
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Two tries left: Swiss entrepreneur’s $243m Bitcoin drama

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