The IronKey USB drive holding private keys to about $777 million in Bitcoin can permanently erase itself after 10 wrong password attempts, underscoring self-custody risks.
Programmer Stefan Thomas remains locked out of 7,002 Bitcoin worth about $777 million after losing the password to an IronKey encrypted USB drive holding the wallet’s private keys. Thomas received the Bitcoin in 2011 as payment for a “What is Bitcoin?” educational video and has already used eight of the device’s 10 allowed password attempts, leaving two remaining before the drive permanently locks and deletes its contents. Kingston said there is no backup password or alternative recovery method beyond the original user-set password, highlighting the operational risk of self-custody (holding assets without an intermediary). Thomas has sought outside help, including digital forensics firm Naxo and security researcher Chris Tarnovsky, but no breakthrough had been confirmed by mid-2026. The case has become one of crypto’s best-known examples of how strong wallet security can also make lost access irreversible as Bitcoin’s price rises.