http://www.torontosun.com/2013/11/28...th-of-bitcoins
A British man is kicking himself for throwing out a hard drive in the summer, just now remembering he had the password to a digital wallet with about $7.5 million worth of bitcoins on it.
Bitcoin is a digital currency. It reached its highest value on Wednesday, topping $1,000.
"You know when you put something in the bin and in your head say to yourself, 'That's a bad idea'? I really did have that," James Howells told the Guardian newspaper.
Howells said he "mined" the coins in 2009 when the currency wasn't so well-known. He stored the private key to his wallet on the hard drive. Without it, he cannot access his 7,500 bitcoins.
He said he's been to the landfill where his hard drive is likely under three or four feet of garbage, but said it would cost too much to dig in the area where it might be, especially if he came up empty-handed.
A British man is kicking himself for throwing out a hard drive in the summer, just now remembering he had the password to a digital wallet with about $7.5 million worth of bitcoins on it.
Bitcoin is a digital currency. It reached its highest value on Wednesday, topping $1,000.
"You know when you put something in the bin and in your head say to yourself, 'That's a bad idea'? I really did have that," James Howells told the Guardian newspaper.
Howells said he "mined" the coins in 2009 when the currency wasn't so well-known. He stored the private key to his wallet on the hard drive. Without it, he cannot access his 7,500 bitcoins.
He said he's been to the landfill where his hard drive is likely under three or four feet of garbage, but said it would cost too much to dig in the area where it might be, especially if he came up empty-handed.
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