22 $BTC seized in 2021 have vanished from a cold wallet at Seoul's Gangnam Police Station. → USB cold wallet was never stolen → But BTC was transferred out externally → Loss went undetected for years → Another 320 BTC (~$21M) also went missing in 2025 Why it matters: Cold storage doesn't protect against insider access or poor key management. Even governments struggle with proper crypto custody. Negligence or inside job?
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South Korea Police Lose $1.5M in Bitcoin
22 $BTC seized in 2021 have vanished from a cold wallet at Seoul's Gangnam Police Station.
→ USB cold wallet was never stolen
→ But BTC was transferred out externally
→ Loss went undetected for years
→ Another 320 BTC (~$21M) also went missing in 2025
Why it matters:
Cold storage doesn't protect against insider access or poor key management. Even governments struggle with proper crypto custody.
Negligence or inside job?