I had always managed my cryptocurrency assets by distributing them across multiple wallets. But the day before yesterday, I experienced a bolt from the blue: one of them was hacked. The target was Yoroi, a wallet dedicated to Cardano ADA. Despite having no activity other than staking, one day all my coins were suddenly transferred to an unfamiliar address. At first, I was so stunned I wondered, ‘Did I transfer them to another wallet and forget?’ But reality was harsh. A hacker had stolen control of my wallet and withdrawn the assets. Checking community forums revealed cases where people had been tricked by phishing sites into handing over their information, but my situation was different. The most likely route was Evernote. My downfall was recording the ‘wallet recovery phrase (Seed Phrase)’—intended to share with my wife as a precaution—in an online note.

The price for ignoring the fundamental security principle—“Always write your recovery phrase on paper and store it offline”—was severe. By the time I received the warning email about an Indonesian IP accessing my Evernote, it was already too late. I belatedly blocked access and changed passwords, but it was like closing the barn door after the horse had bolted. The stolen amount itself was substantial, but more than that, the first night was spent sleepless, filled with regret as an investor who believed in and supported the Cardano project, and self-loathing for failing to prevent the hack. Hoping for a glimmer of hope, I contacted the staking pool operator, only to be told, “Staking permissions and withdrawal permissions are technically separated; this couldn’t have been a normal procedure.” Moreover, I painfully realized that the Yoroi wallet was vulnerable to security breaches due to its inadequate two-factor authentication (2FA) methods, which relied on OTP or mobile phones. Comparing it to other wallets with superior security recently only deepened my regret over my initial choice.

I spent time feeling discouraged, angry, and blaming myself, but I resolved to regain my composure. I immediately strengthened the security of my other wallets significantly and sought advice from community experts. However, I humbly accepted the reality that, due to the immutable nature of blockchain where transactions cannot be reversed, there is virtually no way to recover the assets unless the hacker voluntarily returns them. While I did offer a 10% bounty for help, I decided not to hold out much hope. I consider this incident a costly lesson in security. I’ve now ingrained the habit of strictly managing critical passwords offline and regularly changing online account passwords. To compensate for the lost assets, I head back to the delivery site today, once again carrying the preciousness of hard-earned money in my heart.