How can one recover a Trezor wallet with 1,350 BTC?

As a former cybersecurity enthusiast and practitioner, I happened to come across Shentu Qingchun’s article. The details resonated with me deeply, so I decided to repost it. My original intention was simply to reminisce about my past—not to attract widespread attention. But unexpectedly, this once-obscure public account became lively and buzzing.

The article described a “windfall of wealth” that seemed to be obtained almost effortlessly. Most readers found it unbelievable—just as I found the overwhelming traffic to the article unbelievable. And so, today’s topic emerged: How can one recover a Trezor wallet with 1,350 BTC?

The previous article sparked wide interest and received a flood of comments. Opinions varied greatly, and could be summarized into three main categories:

1 Support and admiration, with comments like “Ten years sharpening a sword, and now the world knows your name.”

2 Skepticism, labeling it as either fantasy fiction or outright fraud.

3 Technical inquiries, from readers who had encountered similar issues and were seeking solutions.

This brought to mind Voltaire’s famous quote: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” In such a vast and diverse world, people naturally have different backgrounds and knowledge bases, leading to different perspectives—that’s perfectly normal.

Cybersecurity is a niche field within the broader realm of computer science. It has a high entry barrier, and the general public often holds extreme views about it. Some are overly anxious, worrying that their digital worth is less than a compromised BTC wallet. Others think it’s trivial—assuming data recovery and program cracking are easy tasks. What they don’t realize is that breaking into a system can cost just as much as building one.

To me, the charm of this industry lies in turning the impossible into reality. There’s a kind of exhilaration and defiant joy in overcoming obstacle after obstacle, solving challenge after challenge.

So, what challenges did Shentu Qingchun and his team overcome, as described in the article?

Reading chip data:

They started by disassembling the device and accessing the chip. They bought soldering guns, heat guns, and embedded development boards, and practiced their soldering day and night. After countless tests, they finally read the data from the Trezor chip. Challenges included: Where is the data stored? What protection mechanisms are in place? How can those be bypassed? How can the data be extracted?

Developing data decryption tools:

They decrypted the extracted data to prepare for the next step—password recovery (via brute force). What algorithms were used? How was the data reconstructed?

Building a password recovery program:

They optimized GPU-based recovery algorithms to enhance efficiency and ultimately recovered the password. This involved accurately interpreting the information provided by the client, generating plausible password dictionaries, optimizing brute-force algorithms, and leveraging massive computing resources for cracking.

To simplify:

Original password A —(encryption algorithm X)→ ciphertext B —(stored encrypted)→ data C

Recovery process:

Step 1: Extract data C

Step 2: Decrypt C to retrieve ciphertext B

Step 3: Generate a large password dictionary, encrypt each password using algorithm X, and compare the resulting ciphertexts to B

Step 4: When they match, A is recovered via brute-force.

But there are additional complications—encryption may involve salt, algorithm X might not be a standard one, and may consume extensive resources. It may even involve nested encryption. That’s why the article mentioned optimizing the algorithm to improve efficiency.

All this is just a rough guess from a former security enthusiast. The actual complexity is likely far beyond imagination. Yet the author described it in a steady, engaging tone, showcasing remarkable technical prowess.

I once tried to learn badminton. Before I started, I thought it would be easy—because ignorance breeds fearlessness. I dedicate that thought to those who attack and insult without understanding.

This is my tribute to the past. Sixteen years ago, a stranger’s recognition and encouragement set me on the path of cybersecurity—despite my late start, my clumsiness, and all the detours.

Three or four years ago, I had hoped to pivot into hardware. For various reasons, that pursuit was shelved. And along with the tools, the dream was tucked away too.