Bitcoin Forum

Since it is the start of a new year, I thought it would be a good time to remember some exemplary behaviour by members of the Bitcointalk community throughout the years. The below examples show how some of our members acted when they received money that didn't belong to them. It shows how they performed in situations where they could have taken advantage of someone else's mistakes.

The list is not based on my personal ranking of best to worse, I just posted the examples as I came across them. 


1.

In April 2014, the user johoe  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=143551)discovered a bug that allowed to expose private keys for specific addresses. He informed the community and blockchain.info about his findings and saved many users from losing money

You can get more info on this particular case here:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.0

He made a list of addresses here  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.msg6354731#msg6354731) and here  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.msg9774894#msg9774894)that got exposed and asked the members who owned the coins on those addresses to prove their ownership so he could send them back.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.msg9774894#msg9774894

johoe returned the 255 bitcoins he swept to blockchain.info. Their users were affected by the bug, and he instructed them to contact the platform for refunds.

Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.msg9791998#msg9791998

In total, johoe posted that he swept over 870 bitcoins to his own wallet to save the funds from being stolen by someone else who discovered the same vulnerability.


Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=581411.msg9888800#msg9888800

johoe deserves special recognition for his actions.


2.

In December 2012, the user TheButterZone (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=60600), received almost 520 bitcoins in a few different transactions to one of his addresses by mistake. He made a thread on Bitcointalk to try and find who sent him the money. He even thought someone was trying to set him up for a crime. Even a collision was mentioned as a reason the bitcoins were accidentally sent to him.

TheButterZone moved some of his own bitcoins that he kept at the same address. The 520 accidentally received bitcoins were transferred to a paper wallet for added protection. In his post, he asks the sender(s) to prove ownership of the coins by signing a message, after which he will send them back to the original owner.

The whole story is available on the link below. 
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=133122.0

Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=133122.0

I am not sure how this saga concluded, but his intention to inform the community and give back what doesn’t belong to him deserves every praise.


3.

In June 2010, Gavin Andreasen announced his bitcoin faucet on Bitcointalk. (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=183.0) He was giving away 5 bitcoins per user to spread the word and give new users a chance to test out bitcoin.

It didn’t take long for someone to find a way to abuse the system. Luckily, it was wobber  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=251) who had no intentions of keeping the claimed coins and gave them back. He only wanted to test if it could be abused.

Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=183.msg1533#msg1533

He suggested that one address shouldn’t be able to claim coins more than once. Gavin took note of his proposal and changed the configuration so that an address can only use the faucet once.

Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=183.msg1541#msg1541

The amounts wobber claimed from the faucet, might not have been a lot at the time, but his actions reminded me of simpler times when people were decent. That’s why I think he deserves mention in this thread.


4.

The next case doesn’t involve a user from Bitcointalk. It involves the companies Bitmain and BitGo. Due to a bug in BitGo’s recovery tool, a user ended up paying over 85 bitcoins in transaction fees (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1044156.0) for a 16 BTC transaction he sent in April 2015. You can view the transaction id here. (https://blockchair.com/bitcoin/transaction/860e4e6bc2b846f00a1660dcb49d84a00dcd7b87ba23100e836dfb682249a807?_type=transaction&_search=homepage)

The user who was affected contacted BitGo and Bitmain and explained what happened. The transaction got mined by AntPool.

This is BitGo’s reply on the incident that led to these enormous fees:

Source (https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/33u2id/help_losing_over_85_btc_because_of_bitgos_flawed/cqoo4tr/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3)

After they realised what happened, the mining pool returned the entire sum to the original owner.
Hats off to Bitmain, AntPool, and BitGo for acting professionally. OP’s confirmation that he received a full refund and his comments can be seen on reddit here (https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/341xkr/all_lost_btc_returned_thank_you_to_bitmain_bitgo/).


5.

The last case of exemplary community behaviour comes from BitcoinFX  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=30)in 2010. This is connected to Gavin’s faucet that I talked about in example #3. When BitcoinFX saw Gavin’s request for someone to refill the faucet, BitcoinFX made a donation of 500 bitcoins.

Here is that post  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=183.msg7536#msg7536)and the hash (https://blockchair.com/bitcoin/transaction/92435cc4da7808976aa6d3d9c8fb02e7fe23a48b9f9c73145ef738b0d8d977e2?_type=transaction&_search=homepage) of the transaction.


Source: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=183.msg7536#msg7536

---

That’s all for today. I am sure there are many more examples where members did the right thing, but it’s hard to find. Feel free to share similar examples that you know of.

Happy New Year!

I'm sorry, but Gavins' faucet can't be mentioned without giving a special shoutout to the Spanish Jerk Draining the Faucet (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=704). I know the thread is about heroes; but there's always an antiheroe in every story

Unfortunately that is how things work in all segments of life. Because of some selfish individuals or groups, good initiatives have to be stopped or can't reach those they were initially meant for. Most people who see an old man fall on the street, will try to help and pick him up off the road. But there are also those who will reach into his pocket and run away with his wallet. It's because of those that measures and countermeasures have to be introduced.

.#1.

• A bit similar to your 4th case, "btcxchg (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=99598)" sent 2.8BTC by mistake for a 0.0003BTC amount and "GHash.IO" mined that block ^{[source (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=602152.0)]}.
  
  
  • Quote from: btcxchg on May 13, 2014, 05:49:58 PM
    Hi again community,
    I am very glad to inform you that GHash.IO are very good guys and have refund me the 2.8 btc.
    
    This is the CEX.IO support answer:
    
    

    Quote

    Hi btcxchg,
    
    I'm glad to inform you that your issue has been successfully resolved.
    
    Please provide us with your BTC wallet address and we'll send you your funds.
    
    I'll be waiting for your reply. Thank you for your request.

    
    You can look the refund in the same address from where it was the sent
    https://blockchain.info/address/1MtGNGScWBTT4SVi2rKf9v9846PmYd57Qv
    
    Thanks a lot to all for your support!
    
  • Reading through that thread shows they've refunded a few other users in the past as well ^{[taken from their comments only]}.

---

.#2.

• "la_mocha (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=708542)" sent by accident 30BTC to bitmixer.io's donation address and luckily ^{[even though they didn't want to refund it initially]}, he/she managed to get it back in the end ^{[source (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1307269.0)]}.
  ^{- They even sent him/her 5BTC as compensation.}
  
  
  • Written conversation (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1307269.msg13383966#msg13383966)
  • Quote from: la_mocha on January 02, 2016, 08:52:50 PM
    Hello. Gave up after reading the thread, but gladly this has been resolved.
    The Bitmixer support team sent me a mail which is "Sorry again for the issue, all admins were on vacations. I've transferred 30 + 5 btc as a compensation. Thank you.".
    They gave me a happy new year present :)
    
    Thank you.
    
  • TX (https://www.blockchain.com/btc/tx/edaa17afa27845bb26fb08bd9147080bc8440e3439d43ac2e29ebef61ea65025) ^[mistake].
  • TX (https://www.blockchain.com/btc/tx/fe2af5d6a7d451fab433ab47c9838fd3e97419cf1d3451b73439f7a3d316724f) ^[refund].

For some reason I was kind of expecting GameKyuubi(the HODL (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=375643.0) guy) to appear on your list. :P Nice thread nevertheless.

Thanks for your suggestions!
Yeah, I came across case number 1. But since it was very similar to one of those I already talked about and the amounts were significantly smaller (in amounts of bitcoin), I decided not to include it.

Case number 2 is new to me and I didn't see this thread in my initial research. Thanks for bringing it up!

Based on the title I assume? ;D 

my top two are @johoe and @jgarzik ---> Strange block 74638 (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=822.0)

The topic talks about a Bug that made it possible to generate more than 184 Billion BTC, after which a hard fork happens to the network.
I do not know what criteria for including people to your list, but the two examples above illustrate how the two accounts helped a group of people related to Bitcoin, not individual events.

Excellent choice for a thread, OP.  There have been times when I'd become so cynical and jaded that I was certain that there were no honest bitcoiners anymore, as I'd seen so much scamming--even by members who'd formerly been very trusted.  Sometimes it felt like I was searching for the last honest auto mechanic, if you know what I mean.

A thread like this sort of restores my faith in at least some members' fundamental honesty and integrity.  It hasn't exactly made me a non-cynical person, but a thread like this is like one of those Youtube videos that are meant to restore your faith in humanity, showing people doing altruistic deeds for no reward or recognition.

Happy new year and let's hope for a great year for bitcoin.

It is nice to see the examples of all those remarkable users mentioned in OP. I consider their gesture a behavior of honesty and dignity, something that all of us should do. Why benefit from the hard work of others, if they made a mistake?

Without considering myself a hero, as my example can not be compared to OP's examples even by far (regarding the amount of money involved), I can say that in November last year I was involved in a similar case.

I was hired by Little Mouse for a short English - Romanian translation. We agreed to a payment of 25.000 sats. During the translation I gave him my input about many typos, small errors, even in the English text, showing him that I am very meticulous and involved in my work. He was so pleased that he paid me double :) However, by mistake, after he sent me the payment, he sent another payment of 0.003 BTC which, at that time, represented about 70$. Obviously, I returned him the money sent by mistake (his feedback on this matter can be seen at my Trust section of the profile  at the Untrusted feedbacks). I did it because I am a honorable person, a correct individual and I didn't want to profit from his mistake. It was not right.

As I said above, my example is far, compared to the users mentioned in OP. But being honorable can be proven even with 1$, not just with hundreds if BTC. I encourage all to be fair, to be correct with others and others will be correct with you. In life, what goes around comes around. Don't let your greed take over you and profit from others' mistakes! Your conscience will never let you feel good afterwards!

It’s 0.003 BTC  ;D
I had mistakenly copied Gazeta's address while I was sending BTC to another person. I didn’t even notice that, was busy with another work, couldn’t check closely. So, I sent the BTC to Gazeta. When the receiver whom I wanted to send said he didn’t receive, I checked back and found the address was not same. At first thought, I felt like it was the copy paste malware which changed the address, I checked with explorer and was able to detect one tx. Then I checked Gazeta's address and got the mistake.
I contacted him and he sent me without any hesitantion.

Thank you for correcting me. Indeed, the amount was 0.003 BTC , not 0.0003 BTC. I also corrected it in my above post. Thank you also for confirming the story is true :)

I didn't come across this case when I did my research, but you are right, it is another great example of praiseworthy conduct. I do remember the case and I read about it in the past. It led to a solution being found relatively quickly, in the space of just a few hours. 

You are welcome mate. I am glad it was well received.

Some people don't have a conscience. But those who do, know what the right thing to do is. Good personal example there.

BitcoinFX just gave 500btc to help out? That's quite noteworthy. Yet I've seen people give him little respect here in recent times. Guy should be treated like royalty in retrospect.

It sure is.

I can't really remember a particular situation where he was disrespected recently, or am I not visiting the right boards and topics? Are you referring to a specific case where such a thing happened?

Though I'm definitely NOT discrediting BitcoinFX here(because he surely deserves all the praise from his help), don't forget that 1 BTC was worth FAR far less back in 2010 compared to today. Still, huge huge props and all the respect to him for contributing to the early Bitcoin community!

All of the examples are from 2010-2014 and a time when bitcoin wasn't worth as much as it is today. I would have liked to include a few newer cases, but I didn't come across such examples during my search.

There is an ongoing discussion if 1 bitcoin is always 1 bitcoin. It started in the ChipMixer signature campaign thread and there is now a separate thread dedicated only for discussing if 1 BTC = 1 BTC or not (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5308866.0). If we are going by the logic that 1 BTC is always 1 BTC, there shouldn't be any difference between a case from 2011 and one from 2020. If we consider the fiat values of the bitcoin involved, the difference is huge. 

Yea, totally aware of that interesting discussion(I even posted a link to that thread on the ChipMixer thread to stop the off-topic discussion). I actually thought twice with my response as I totally knew I was pretty much setting myself up with this reply of yours. 🤣 Still, kudos for creating a very nice thread nonetheless!

It is indeed inspiring to read these threads about people having chosen the better thing to do when faced with temptation and greed. OPs third example reminds of the lofty ideals that bitcoin started with. It can also be linked to the lofty idealism that young people generally have before jobs and having realized the power of money.

The above quote is reminiscent of the way young people think that the world is BAD the way it is and they need to overthrow it. People gradually realize that there are no easy solutions when it comes to the problems of the world. It is easy to blame the establishment but it is a dangerous game when you do not have a working alternative. It is also prudent to ask then if bitcoin has become enough of an alternative to change the existing power structure?

I remember this when the Bitsler admin accidentally sent much more BTC than it should to signature manager @yahoo62278, but he still got them back.
a great example of how to gain a reputation here.

That certainly deserves a special mention and I am glad you posted it. In terms of fiat value, the amount yahoo62278 returned is higher than the other examples I found. If someone can be trusted with money, the sums shouldn't matter, and this is a great example of that. 

I could remember similar incidence that happened in 2019 when a Nigeria crypto enthusiast returned back 7.8 BTC that was mistakenly sent to him, although it occured outside the forum, he could also be considered as a hero right?

https://cointelegraph.com/news/nigerian-crypto-educator-returns-80k-in-bitcoin-received-by-mistake

The thread is already here in the forum which you can read more.
Nigerian crypto educator returns $80k in bitcoin recieve by mistake. (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5185783.msg52493049#msg52493049)

Hat of indeed, though I would be curious how some would react today at prices of now and not with prices of 2010-2011 etc.... The days when 200+  btc only was 2K  8)

Seeing from the many members who took away loans, I didn't expect there was still a member who was very honest and not easily tempted.  salute to him.. 

When seeing from the current value of Bitcoin, the value of Bitcoin returned by Yahoo is worth $ 1.2 million.  hats off for yahoo..

I read about that and found that news when I did my research for this thread. But, I wanted to focus mostly on cases that involved members of this forum and not what media reported. Aside from the Bitmain and AntPool case, every other example involved Bitcointalk users. But yeah, there are bunch of other examples where users did the right thing, according to media reports.

Wow, this is just... wow! I've never come across any of these stories before.
These are quite inspiring messages to new generations of crypto enthusiasts. Truly unsung heroes of Bitcointalk!

Thank you, Pmalek, for bringing this out of the clutter of Bitcointalk history.

.

I think the heroic story of a newbie  EZ0010  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=2900073) should make the list. He used a VPN to register making him look fairly anonymous to the forum. On the 22nd 0f December, 2021 he received $1000 worth of Bitcoin mistakenly sent to him by  theymos  (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5378231.msg58800558#msg58800558) and due to his anonymous status there was little chance of getting the BTC back. But instead of using the money from holiday expenses, since it was during the Christmas holiday season, he returned the BTC immediately. His heroic deed went viral in the forum and he received almost 289 merits. His comments were;

About EZ0010, I agree to be listed in this thread. I even created a thread to appreciate his honest attitude even though he could have just shut up and disappeared for the $1000 he randomly received from theymos. To date, EZ0010 has never had many posts, only 5 posts although I think he can be active any time he wants to post something that interests him in this forum.

That honest attitude is better than the thousands of spam posts you spread (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5378703.0)

Not to piss on anybody's parade here, but is basic honesty something we ought to be calling heroic here on bitcointalk?  I'll admit the previous examples of people returning crypto that they could have easily just disappeared with are the rare exceptions to a pitiful rule that this place is wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling crawling with scammers, but I just don't see that term fitting the actions.

My thought is that if we're talking about unsung heroes, it should be something like the members who report the highest number of rule-breaking posts to the mods, or the scam busters, or the merit sources, all of whom keep the forum's wheels greased so that it runs fairly smoothly while at the same time not getting paid or even necessarily getting a lot of recognition.

Just my $0.02.

I'm not saying he's heroic just because he's willing to return $1000, but I have one particular conclusion for that user when I compare him to many spammers.


Actually I don't think it's a decent comparison because honesty and user posting habits are something different. But spammers are not honest with themselves because they don't want to do their best to improve the quality of their posts to keep forum clean of spam posts.

I agree with your assumptions but I can honestly say that the contributors you mention are really appreciated more especially after they have earned a good reputation. They are recognized on these forum based on their reputation, while spam buster or low-activity cheat hunters are much less likely to get a lot of attention and even be recognized. Spam busters, cheater hunters, merit sources and several other contributing members are also worthy of being on the list. So I will not exclude them.

At least I have a little contribution to the forum though not very worthy of recognition.  :D

https://i.imgur.com/ASdn0Cn.png

You are totally right Sir, because those are the sole ingredients which keeps the forum running smoothly, but in as much as we are talking about unsung heroes here, the names listed by the O.P could actually be called "Heroes of the forums" too, because it only takes people with a good heart to actually do what they did, because just like you said, we leave in forum full of scammers, of which many would have ran away from the forum had they been mistakenly transferred such huge amount of Bitcoin, but they never did, but gave the money back to the rightful owners. Because to me, this is the highest act of kindness and love for Bitcoin, of which we should be happy for having such people here on this forum.

I think it is. Morality and honesty has gone down the toilet. I have come across many people who are of the opinion that if an opportunity to steal presents itself then why wouldn't you use it? You would be an idiot not to.

I have forgotten where it happened, but I remember a case from a few years ago where two underaged degenerates beat up, stabbed, and killed a young boy in a bus in the middle of the day. It might have been a tram. The vehicle was full with grown-ass men and women, but no one found it necessary to prevent 2 kinds from killing another one. We live in weird and bad times where if you see a guy beat a girl on the street, the reaction is to take out your phone and videotape it. After that, you post it on social media. Depending on who you are, you either put angry emojis next to the video or you say lol, the bitch deserved it.

My example is not the same as returning money that doesn't belong to you but in a society deprived of feelings and morality, decent people are becoming the outcasts. Not the other way around. Am I too pessimistic?   

Morally and honestly, people like this deserve to be appreciated, we live in an era full of hypocrisy, social functions are completely lost in the part of life. Because honesty and other people's problems are considered irresponsible to the individual, while social control fosters honesty in the sensitivity we see.

We find it difficult to give applause and appreciation to others, because it is considered a compliment. But for some, it is seen as a motivational boost in pushing for social control.
Once again I really agree and give appreciation to people like this, but it is not analogous to other good cases who are meritorious people in the forum.

It's not heroic, though, and I mean that in the strict sense of the word--nor are members of DT, merit sources, campaign managers, or any highly-recognized and/or respected members of the forum.  This might be a bit of a bugaboo with me, because I think the word hero has lost much of its meaning (much like racism) simply because it's being applied to everything--and I think the overuse got ridiculously out of hand during the pandemic.  It seemed like everyone who reported to work in 2020 was deemed a hero. 

I don't know about anybody else, but heroes are people who exhibit great courage, usually in the service of others.  Someone returning a lot of money when they could have run away with it is showing excellent character, but not heroism.  That's gonna be the end of my nitpicking.

And to your point about indifference in the face of someone else's crisis, that's been going on for a looong time.  Ever hear of the Kitty Genovese case (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Kitty_Genovese)?  Well, that happened back in 1964 and raised people's awareness of the issue of whether or not to get involved....until time made everyone forget. 

Human nature doesn't change all that quickly.

I live in a foreign land. I often drown in fear and suspicion of other people. because human morals are so messed up today. so I was at a point where I decided not to trust anyone.
Although in the end, a friend appeared who really opened my eyes to live a more optimistic life and be kind to anyone. And it warms my heart in the real world, so that my frozen heart has melted by that warmth.

And now I'm reading this thread. once again I feel the warmth in my heart. Because it turns out that good people will always be there. Both visible and hidden.
There will always be a hero in life.
even in this forum. And I think there are far more hidden people with Hero hearts in this forum.
Sometimes a kindness must be shown. to convey to the world that there is still light in this world. So that people are not always drowned in the darkness of the heart that makes the mind always suspicious and afraid and prejudiced against others. (I've experienced it). it makes life unhappy.

From this thread i learned that honest people will always be there. whether it is visible or hidden.

If you're talking of only people who returned  wrongly transferred Bitcoin to their addresses as unsung heroes, then you might as well add EZ0010 for what they did here (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5378231.msg58800558#msg58800558) by also returning Bitcoin that was wrongly sent to them by theymos. Don't get me wrong, I ain't saying such an act was a mean feat in a world of moral bankruptcy, I'm simply saying there should be more to the unsung hero tag. Like Pharmacist said (I also second their argument in that direction, those who've quietly been helping this community grow should own that glowing appellation.

You aren't the first to mention EZ0010 and his decision to return the wrongly sent bitcoin to theymos. It was a very nice gesture and a surprising incident altogether. With that, I mean the fact that several parties sent coins to the wrong addresses and that includes our admin as well. Luckily, it all worked out correctly in the end. Too bad that EZ0010 didn't decide to hang around and become an active member of the forum. It would have been really interesting to get to know him better through his posts and find out how he thinks. His last post was in December 2021 talking about this particular case.