Lost 2.03 BTC via bitcoinpaperwallet.com Am I wasting my time trying to recover?

[Faisal2202]

So sad, feeling sorry for you, i hope you will not get scammed like that in the future, i prefer you to trust, the open-source and most used platform in your area, and if you had that much BTC (i know it may not be that much for you but for me, it's too much) then you should diversify them in different accounts at different platform instead of trusting bitcointapaperwallet. TBH i have no idea what this platform was and i think i should be happy about that, i can see you are not the only one, there are many topics that have already been made on this platform like 2 to 3 years back. But you came to know about it now! Where have you been, even i checked a topic where a user said he/she has doxxed the scammer but that person might be the wrong one (so never matter).

Now all i can suggest you to not trust any single platform even if you have 1 BTC. Perform proper analysis then put your assets in it, because 2+ BTC is not a small quantity. You must have to be careful if you still have BTC.

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[SamReomo]

Three years ago I made a paper wallet using an online generator and my public key is 1MXb3vY5sCC2rB2bD2rusQjxEyYUDEKcHT. I stored my private keys locked in a Keepass password manager (with a very long and strong password) and made sure it's different than my primary general Bitwarden password generator. I just checked my balance 2 days ago and realized it's all missing since 11/25/2022. Any advice how to get my money back?  I feel like reporting or even trying to sue Sarkis Sarkissian (new owner of the bitcoinpaperwallet) would cost me even more headaches and waste of time since not guaranteed that I will get my money back. Do you happen to know any success stories or any recommendations on what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

I'm sorry but there is no way which could help you to recover the stolen Bitcoin from the wallet. However, it seems strange to me that why in this advanced age people still rely on paper wallets? I prefer you to never ever use paper wallets and move on to more secure open-source wallet software on a safe computer. The site bitcoinpaperwallet.com is a very shady website and many users have reported the scam of the site and its owner. I don't know how you fall into their trap because even in 2020 people were aware that the site is a scam and is known to steal the private keys of its users who have generated those keys from their site.

I would recommend you to create a safe wallet next time and never ever share your private key to anyone because even sharing it with a loved one could cause a lot of problems for the owner. We always learn from our mistakes and you should also learn from you mistake and continue the struggle in the matrix because there are many shady and malicious actors in each area of it.

[Fivestar4everMVP]

Three years ago I made a paper wallet using an online generator and my public key is 1MXb3vY5sCC2rB2bD2rusQjxEyYUDEKcHT. I stored my private keys locked in a Keepass password manager (with a very long and strong password) and made sure it's different than my primary general Bitwarden password generator. I just checked my balance 2 days ago and realized it's all missing since 11/25/2022. Any advice how to get my money back?  I feel like reporting or even trying to sue Sarkis Sarkissian (new owner of the bitcoinpaperwallet) would cost me even more headaches and waste of time since not guaranteed that I will get my money back. Do you happen to know any success stories or any recommendations on what I should do?

Thanks in advance.

A simple research should tell you that the site you mentioned is a scam, but even if it wasn't, and let's assume you were hacked, then what I would tell you is to just move on, your money is gone for good and there is absolutely no way it can be recovered, except the person that stole it decides to send it back, which I think is another mission impossible, considering the fact that the bitcoins were already transfered out since November 2022, that's about 7 going to 8 months ego, there isn't even any guarantee that the supposed hacker still have your coins In their possession, so the best decision is to just forget about the coins and move on with your life, the money is gone and there's nothing you can do about it unfortunately..

[sunsilk]

Sometimes software wallets are just better than any of that strange sites on the internet

You said it right but it's better to have it on a hardware wallet when you've got around 2+ BTC as that's a lot of money already considering the price of bitcoin.

I feel bad about OPs loss because that website isn't really familiar and sad to see people using random websites and trusting them with as much as Bitcoins as they can.

Even if someone hasn't even got a whole bitcoin, I am sure that there are those folks that have bought a hardware wallet for it.

[adaseb]

I used those old paper wallet sites before but you need to verify if it’s legit first and then make sure to do a checksum on it. I think bitaddress dot org is the only legit one out there.

Another issue is you need to save the website and run it off line when you generate the private keys. Never do it online. And never store it in a password manager. It’s never safe that way.

[libert19]

In most cases, anything gone from your address is gone forever in crypto. I read similar story to yours on Reddit too just few days ago.

To store your crypto, it's advisable to not use online pvk generation services. You never know what goes behind the scenes.

[Potato Chips]

If you're serious, I suggest asking a professional for a consultation, they would know better than average people on the internet. I'm not sure where you're from but some places offer not too expensive to free consultations.

You mentioned loads of fellas were also victims so perhaps you could try looking for them and see whether they're interested in your endeavor? it's always better with more people. I'm not sure where you and the person you're trying to sue is but if situation permits it, you could look into class actions and contingency-fee model where you will only pay when you won/settle the case.

[Lucius]

You said it right but it's better to have it on a hardware wallet when you've got around 2+ BTC as that's a lot of money already considering the price of bitcoin.
~snip~

Old habits die hard, but we need to get used to the fact that not everything is as we have been told for years when it comes to hardware wallets. Of course, I refer to the situation with Ledger, but the other popular HW manufacturer has some strange business decisions in their company.

In other words, we need to start dealing with security in the right way and not trust unconditionally anyone, especially large companies that seem to be susceptible to outside influences.

[lixer]

Sometimes software wallets are just better than any of that strange sites on the internet

I know in what sense you are saying that but I still wouldn't recommend anyone using a software wallet for an amount that large because it is also vulnerable to attacks and hacks like this one, though this might be a bit different because the generated seed phrase and private keys might have been available to the website operators and they might be the ones who has used them and withdrew the money from OP's wallet.

Someone having an amount that big should simply not use a wallet generated online because you can't believe anyone on the internet these days even the websites and wallets because they are centralized and they always have your keys so your coins are not safe no matter how safe you keep your keys from your end.

[Synchronice]

If you have time and you are a person who does not give up easily, then I suggest that you report the whole matter to the police, and it would be good if you try to determine where your BTC ended up (if at all possible) in order to maybe be able to detect the person behind everything. I'm not saying that the chances of you succeeding are high, but if that scammer has scammed a lot of people and if a large number of those people do the same as you, it is possible that someone will be interested in trying to solve the case.

On the other hand, if you don't do anything, you've admitted defeat and all that will only be an expensive lesson for the future. Whoever is behind it surely hopes that you will do the latter.

OP, keep his words in mind. The more resistant you are, the more discomfort you create for your enemy and finally he may give up. If it doesn't cost you a lot, you shouldn't give up. And take it as a lesson, never ever do things blindly, always become a little expert into it, especially when it comes to your money. Check child boards on this forum, like Wallet software and its child boards, including Electrum and Hardware Wallets.
You can create paper wallet on your own, the best way is to download and install tails on your usb flash drive, then ensure that your device isn't connected to internet and it doesn't have any wireless hardware, then boot tails, launch electrum (it's built in tails), create a bitcoin wallet and write down seeds on your paper or on metal plate that you can buy online on Trezor website or somewhere else.
Yeah, that's all, you shouldn't trust 3rd parties, especially online websites to create a bitcoin address for you.

[imamusma]

Bitcoin are money and thus they must be properly secured. Any loss is the responsibility of the owner, so even if it is due to hacking or whatever makes it lost, of course the owner is responsible. Every person or owner of bitcoin should be aware that not only is bitcoin a risk due to its price volatility, but security and poor security practices are also a risk of loss. No one can recover lost of bitcoin, they will be lost forever.

In most cases, anything gone from your address is gone forever in crypto. I read similar story to yours on Reddit too just few days ago.

To store your crypto, it's advisable to not use online pvk generation services. You never know what goes behind the scenes.

[KiaKia]

If you have time and you are a person who does not give up easily, then I suggest that you report the whole matter to the police, and it would be good if you try to determine where your BTC ended up (if at all possible) in order to maybe be able to detect the person behind everything. I'm not saying that the chances of you succeeding are high, but if that scammer has scammed a lot of people and if a large number of those people do the same as you, it is possible that someone will be interested in trying to solve the case.

On the other hand, if you don't do anything, you've admitted defeat, and all that will only be an expensive lesson for the future. Whoever is behind it surely hopes that you will do the latter.

Nice idea but the success chance of this is extremely low, if OP is from somewhere where technology is very limited, like where I am living presently, it's a big waste of time, I am not trying to ridicule my country, but we sucks so much when it comes to tech, Computers, Blockchain, and other things like this have no interest from the people in my country, so going down to the nearest police station to report about lost Bitcoin, lol, they will laugh at me and ask me how they will find it, they have no clue.

[serjent05]

I am sorry to hear about your losses @OP, it is a huge sum of money so I think you should report the incident to the authority.  You can try to hire someone to trace the owner of the Bitcoin address so that you will know the perpetrator. .  Since according to the earlier reply that the site is a scam site then I think you will have a bigger chance of winning against the possible perpetrator if you file a case against them.

If you have time and you are a person who does not give up easily, then I suggest that you report the whole matter to the police, and it would be good if you try to determine where your BTC ended up (if at all possible) in order to maybe be able to detect the person behind everything. I'm not saying that the chances of you succeeding are high, but if that scammer has scammed a lot of people and if a large number of those people do the same as you, it is possible that someone will be interested in trying to solve the case.

On the other hand, if you don't do anything, you've admitted defeat, and all that will only be an expensive lesson for the future. Whoever is behind it surely hopes that you will do the latter.

Nice idea but the success chance of this is extremely low, if OP is from somewhere where technology is very limited, like where I am living presently, it's a big waste of time, I am not trying to ridicule my country, but we sucks so much when it comes to tech, Computers, Blockchain, and other things like this have no interest from the people in my country, so going down to the nearest police station to report about lost Bitcoin, lol, they will laugh at me and ask me how they will find it, they have no clue.

Well that may be in your country but Bitcoin now a day is getting more popular.  Authorities have IT's and technical specialists that can take care of our  complaint.