Lost in 2013.. Investor Recovers Bitcoin Wallet Password and Regains About $3 Million

In 2013, a European investor created a 20-character password using RoboForm to protect a wallet containing 43.6 Bitcoin, then stored it in an encrypted file with TrueCrypt. Later, the file became corrupted, and he lost full access to his funds, which were worth no more than $5,000 at the time.

Years later, he enlisted the help of American engineer and hacker Joe Grand, who discovered a flaw in older versions of RoboForm before 2015. Passwords were generated based on the device's date and time, making them reproducible if the time period and settings used were known.

By testing a time range in 2013 and matching the generation settings, the team was able to recreate the correct password and regain access to the wallet.

At the time of recovery, Bitcoin's value had risen significantly. The investor sold about 13.6 Bitcoin when the price exceeded $62,000 per coin, and still holds 30 Bitcoin, which are now valued at approximately $2.1 million, awaiting the price to reach $100,000.