A $38 million Bitcoin hardware wallet failure and Russia’s terrorism charge against Telegram’s founder point to the same uncomfortable reality.
Much of what we call digital safety still rests on reputation rather than verification.
Coldcard stood as one of the most security conscious devices in the industry until a four year old firmware flaw compromised the seed generation process designed to protect users.
Telegram and its founder built a reputation around privacy until researchers uncovered a tracking vulnerability.
When independent verification disappears, trust is all that remains.
My latest piece in Forbes.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2026/07/31/a-38-million-theft-a-global-manhunt--the-illusion-of-digital-safety/
Much of what we call digital safety still rests on reputation rather than verification.
Coldcard stood as one of the most security conscious devices in the industry until a four year old firmware flaw compromised the seed generation process designed to protect users.
Telegram and its founder built a reputation around privacy until researchers uncovered a tracking vulnerability.
When independent verification disappears, trust is all that remains.
My latest piece in Forbes.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2026/07/31/a-38-million-theft-a-global-manhunt--the-illusion-of-digital-safety/
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