Hardware wallet recovery

Hardware Wallet Recovery

Access recovery across the full range of hardware wallet failures

A hardware wallet keeps its key material inside a secure element, isolated from the host machine and, on modern devices, certified to resist physical extraction. Recovery covers a wide range of situations: a device that will not boot after a failed firmware update, a unit damaged by water, impact or heat, a locked device with attempts still remaining, or a wallet that needs restoring from a backup phrase to fresh hardware. Each has a different cause and a different path, and the first job is always to identify which one you are actually dealing with. We assess the device and its state before any intervention, and we work within its security limits rather than pretending to work around them.

10%recovery fee

Only charged on successful recovery

Meet the team

Meet our recovery experts

A team built on years of experience across New Zealand's most complex crypto matters.

Nic Turnbull

Co-Founder

Technical recovery across every wallet type and failure mode

Remote

Can fly anywhere in New Zealand

Harry Satoshi

Co-Founder

Firm development, operations, and client oversight across every recovery

Remote

Can fly anywhere in New Zealand

Our methods

How we recover a hardware wallet

Every recovery is methodical and fully offline. Your key material never leaves our air-gapped equipment, and the work happens in an environment of your choosing.

Attempt preservation and state assessment

Establishing device state before any action that could trigger a wipe.

Remaining PIN attempts identified before anything is tried, since each device wipes at a fixed threshold
Ledger wipes after 3 incorrect attempts; Trezor Safe 7 after 10; other Trezor models after 16
Device make, model, and firmware version documented, as limits and behaviour differ across them
Existing backup material assessed for completeness before any device work
Guessing stopped immediately, because every wrong entry spends an irreplaceable attempt
The recovery approach chosen from what actually remains, not from what we would prefer

PIN reconstruction within device limits

Recovering the PIN from partial memory, inside the attempts the device allows.

Reconstruction from what you recall about how the PIN was chosen and structured
Candidate PINs ranked and written out fully before a single one is entered
Work confined strictly to the remaining attempts, with no gambling of the last tries
The secure element is never attacked, because that is the component doing its job correctly
Escalating time-delays between attempts accounted for in the approach
Alternative paths taken immediately where a usable backup phrase exists

Seed backup recovery and migration

Restoring access from the recovery phrase where the device itself is locked or wiped.

Where a backup phrase exists, the device lock is not the obstacle it appears to be
Restoration to a new or reset device of the same or a compatible standard
Partial or damaged backup phrases handled under our seed phrase reconstruction methods
Passphrase-protected hidden wallets identified and restored where an extra word was set
Verification against a known address before any funds are moved

Firmware and boot failure recovery

Recovering devices stuck after interrupted updates or boot faults, without touching the keys.

Interrupted firmware updates assessed at the device level rather than the key level
A boot or firmware failure distinguished from actual key loss, which are very different situations
Recovery paths that do not require wiping the secure element, where the device allows
Device-specific bootloader and recovery procedures applied by make and model
Key material preserved wherever the secure element remains intact

Physical damage assessment

Evaluating whether the secure element and its storage survived water, impact, or heat.

Board-level assessment for water, impact, and heat damage before any quote
Secure element and storage survivability determined first, since that is what holds the keys
Case, screen, and button damage distinguished from damage to the chip itself
Many apparently dead devices have entirely intact storage behind a broken exterior
An honest assessment of survivability before any invasive work is attempted

Verified migration to clean hardware

Moving recovered access to a new device with the backup properly verified.

Funds migrated to new hardware once access is restored
The new device's backup verified properly at handover, not just generated
Passphrase configuration checked and documented where relevant
Air-gapped handling throughout the engagement
Setup guidance at handover so the same lockout cannot recur

Lost access to your wallet?

Not sure what's actually wrong? That's normal.

Most people who come to us don't know the technical term for what happened to their wallet - and they don't need to. Tell us what you remember, what you still have, and what you've already tried. We'll ask the right questions and work out the rest. There's no obligation, and if we don't think it's recoverable, we'll tell you on the first call.

01
Tell us what happened
A short description of the wallet, what you still have, and what you have already tried. No sensitive detail at this stage. We reply within 24 hours.
02
Free assessment call
We call you. Confidential, no obligation. You get an honest read on whether this is recoverable and roughly how long it would take. If it is not, we say so here - not after taking a fee.
03
Terms in writing
If we think we can help, a short agreement sets out the recovery percentage and the scope. Nothing is payable unless we succeed. An NDA is signed before any work begins.
04
The recovery itself
Methodical, offline, documented. For anything of significant value we travel to you at our cost and work on air-gapped equipment, so your key material never leaves the room.
05
Handover
Assets moved to a wallet you control, with help setting it up properly so this cannot happen again. Follow-up consulting is included at no extra cost.

Failure modes

Failure modes we handle

Forgotten PIN with attempts remaining
The right instinct is to stop. These devices wipe after a set number of wrong entries, and every guess spends one. We reconstruct candidates before anything is tried.
Forgotten PIN but you have the recovery phrase
The strongest position of all. The device lock is irrelevant here, we restore from the phrase and migrate to fresh hardware.
Failed firmware update, device will not boot
Interrupted updates are frequently recoverable at the device level without ever touching the keys.
Physical damage from water, impact, or heat
What matters is the secure element and its storage, not the case or the screen. Many dead-looking devices have intact chips.
Device wiped or reset with only a partial phrase backup
Among the harder cases. What can be done depends entirely on how much of the backup survives, and we are honest about that on the first call.
Passphrase prompt on a device you do not remember configuring
A hidden wallet behind an extra passphrase. A separate problem, and one we handle under passphrase recovery.

A recent case like this one

View all case studies

$800Krecovered
April 2025
Hardware wallet forensics
Hardware wallet drained mid-transaction
A family's life savings sat on a hardware device that was being emptied in real time. The compromise was in the signing path - the device was approving a transaction that was not the one the owner believed they were confirming. We stopped further loss first: isolated still-good keys, moved the remaining balance to clean air-gapped hardware, then reconstructed how the signing UI had been bypassed.

Scam Warning

Most “crypto recovery” services are scams

If someone contacts you first about recovering your crypto, it's a scam - we only ever work with people who come to us. The rest ask for payment upfront, promise results nobody can promise, and want your recovery phrase typed into a website. Scammers also trade lists of people who've responded before, which is often how they found you.

You'll hear back from Nic or Harry directly - not a call centre. Beware of scammers.

Contact us

Describe your situation in general terms - no recovery phrases or private keys through this form. We will call you back within 24 hours with an honest read on whether hardware wallet recovery is possible in your case.

No fee unless we succeed
10% of what's recovered, agreed in writing beforehand. Nothing if we fail.
We can come to you
Anywhere in New Zealand, at our cost, for cases of significant value.
Nothing is retained
Keys and phrases are destroyed or returned at the end of the engagement. NDA signed before we start.

FAQ

Hardware wallet recovery - common questions

How many PIN attempts do I have before the device wipes?

It depends on the device. A Ledger wipes after 3 incorrect attempts. A Trezor Safe 7 wipes after 10, and other Trezor models after 16. Because every wrong guess is spent permanently, the single most important thing is to stop guessing and let us reconstruct candidates first.

My Ledger is locked and I don't have my recovery phrase. Can you extract the keys?

Honestly, no, and neither can anyone else. Modern secure elements are certified specifically to prevent key extraction, which is the entire point of the device. Anyone claiming they can pull keys off a locked, wiped hardware wallet is not telling you the truth. Where there is no backup and the PIN is gone, we will tell you that plainly rather than take a fee.

My device is dead or damaged. Are my coins gone?

Not necessarily. The case and screen are not where your keys live. If the secure element and its storage survived, the device may be recoverable, and even if it did not, an intact recovery phrase restores everything to new hardware. We assess the device before saying either way.

I have my recovery phrase but the device is locked. Is that recoverable?

Yes, and it is the most straightforward case there is. The lock on the device does not matter when the phrase exists, we restore from it to a new or reset device and migrate your funds.

Do I have to post my device to you?

No. For anything of significant value we come to you and work in person, so the device never leaves your sight and its key material never travels.

Can you recover a Trezor, Coldcard, or KeepKey as well as a Ledger?

Yes. The specific attempt limits and recovery procedures differ by make and model, which is exactly why we identify the device precisely before doing anything. The underlying principles are the same across them.

I interrupted a firmware update and now it won't turn on. Is my crypto lost?

Usually not. A device that will not boot after a failed update is often a firmware problem, not a key-loss problem, and those are frequently recoverable at the device level without touching your keys.