How To Not Get Kidnapped For Your Bitcoin (nytimes.com) 85
schwit1 shares a report from the New York Times: Pete Kayll, a musclebound veteran of Britain's Royal Marines, had an unusual instruction for the Bitcoin investors gathered in Switzerland in late October. "Just bite your way out," he told them. It was the final day of a weekend-long cryptocurrency convention on the shore of Lake Lugano, near the Italian border. A small group of investors had lined up in a conference room to have their hands bound with plastic zipties. Now they were learning how to get them off. "Your teeth will get through anything," Mr. Kayll advised. "But it will bloody well hurt."
Most people don't go to an international crypto conference expecting to learn how to gnaw through plastic. But after hours of panels devoted to topics like Bitcoin-collateralized loans, these investors were looking for something more practical. They wanted to know what to do if they were grabbed on the street and thrown into the back of a van. Already paranoid about scams, hacks and market turmoil, wealthy crypto investors have lately become terrified about a much graver threat: torture and kidnapping. These threats are known as "wrench attacks," which is a reference to a popular XKCD cartoon where a thief skips the hacking and just uses a wrench to force out the password.
According to the NYT, the best way to stay protected is staying low-profile, minimizing visible signs of wealth, using basic physical security tools, and preparing for self-defense. The report specifically recommends avoiding flashy displays of wealth like luxury watches and cars, watching for honey-traps, using hotel door stoppers, practicing escape techniques such as breaking zip-ties, hiring discreet bodyguards, and relying on panic-button apps like Glok to summon help quickly.
Most people don't go to an international crypto conference expecting to learn how to gnaw through plastic. But after hours of panels devoted to topics like Bitcoin-collateralized loans, these investors were looking for something more practical. They wanted to know what to do if they were grabbed on the street and thrown into the back of a van. Already paranoid about scams, hacks and market turmoil, wealthy crypto investors have lately become terrified about a much graver threat: torture and kidnapping. These threats are known as "wrench attacks," which is a reference to a popular XKCD cartoon where a thief skips the hacking and just uses a wrench to force out the password.
According to the NYT, the best way to stay protected is staying low-profile, minimizing visible signs of wealth, using basic physical security tools, and preparing for self-defense. The report specifically recommends avoiding flashy displays of wealth like luxury watches and cars, watching for honey-traps, using hotel door stoppers, practicing escape techniques such as breaking zip-ties, hiring discreet bodyguards, and relying on panic-button apps like Glok to summon help quickly.
What a shame. (Score:1)
We've been telling you techo-bro libertarians for 15 years that crypto is nothing more than a front for organized crime.
You reap what you sow.
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Yes, but show-off wealthy people do this all the time, even when they are not involved in crime.
Like, the smartest thing to do when you have wealth is live like a normal person, the only person who will see how much money you have is the bank if you go in person. Use the online app/website to do anything, or even everything.
If you have a family who doesn't understand this, then you don't even show your wealth to them. Live like a poor slob in front of them, and never show them your wealth either.
Like in the
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"Not much point in being wealthy, if you don't flaunt it."
Living well and not worring about money doesn't require you to "flaunt" your wealth.
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Live in a nice neighborhood, not a fancy neighborhood. Buy a good new car, not a Ferrari. That kind of stuff. Live well, but not suspiciously well.
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Re: What a shame. (Score:2)
Step 1: Don't own any BitCoin (Score:5, Funny)
"Your teeth will get through anything," Mr. Kayll advised. "But it will bloody well hurt."
Speak for yourself, my teeth will barely get through a cheese sandwich at my age.
Gold-plated Irony. (Score:2)
"Your teeth will get through anything," Mr. Kayll advised. "But it will bloody well hurt."
Speak for yourself, my teeth will barely get through a cheese sandwich at my age.
Somewhere deep in the closet of irony exists a new old tradition where the shitcoin owner is forced to bite down on a pure gold coin to prove they’re stronger than the kind of imaginary value that can grow a cute little cartoon ape into a token serial killer of investments.
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Re: Step 1: Don't own any BitCoin (Score:2)
If they can read Slashdot, the sandwich is too old regardless of when the parser was born.
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"Your teeth will get through anything," Mr. Kayll advised. "But it will bloody well hurt."
Speak for yourself, my teeth will barely get through a cheese sandwich at my age.
There's nothing like a good smack to the beitzim to stop a would-be rapist. And there's nothing like biting someone if it's all the leverage you have.
Remember, this is not a video game or a sanctioned fight in a boxing ring. This is your life versus the life of a terrorist or other attacker. Kill or be killed. Learn to fight.
Better kidnapping (Score:2)
Now I know to use the metal zip ties if it's in range of their mouth.
Who's laughing now, eh ? (Score:4, Funny)
( And Bitcoin is falling fast today. )
Move to free states. (Score:2, Insightful)
and relying on panic-button apps like Glok to summon help quickly.
Anyone worried about this might consider buying a Glock.
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Because when it's three on one, they'll stand there and give you time to draw. Just like in the movies.
Having a Glock, or any weapon, only works if you have time to use it.
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Because when it's three on one, they'll stand there and give you time to draw. Just like in the movies.
Having a Glock, or any weapon, only works if you have time to use it.
Gnawing through plastic, is not the primary lesson. Situational awareness, is. Plenty of non-victims still alive today understand what helps a concealed weapons holder. Being in the right place at the right time is almost as important as knowing how to read the room and remove yourself if necessary.
As far as Free States go, remember why everyone waives a friendly waive at each other when passing on a country road in the South. Smart people know everyone is armed. Tends to make people quite polite.
Re:Move to free states. (Score:5, Insightful)
As far as Free States go, remember why everyone waives a friendly waive at each other when passing on a country road in the South. Smart people know everyone is armed. Tends to make people quite polite.
Do you know how crazy that sounds to the rest of the world? If fear of being murdered is the only reason for being polite then you just might be the asshole. No wonder countries don't want to deal with the USA.
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As far as Free States go, remember why everyone waives a friendly waive at each other when passing on a country road in the South. Smart people know everyone is armed. Tends to make people quite polite.
Do you know how crazy that sounds to the rest of the world? If fear of being murdered is the only reason for being polite then you just might be the asshole. No wonder countries don't want to deal with the USA.
The rest of the planet, is more violent than you assume. Every day. Forget the humans. You know how crazy it sounds to assume you know what Mother Nature is gonna do to you at any given moment? You do remember why we call them animals, right?
Only thing worse than dying young is dying stupid. Being unprepared in life, isn’t the advice your surviving ancestors lived long enough to give you. And if your ancestors were armed, perhaps you should ask why you’re not.
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The rest of the planet, is more violent than you assume. Every day. Forget the humans. You know how crazy it sounds to assume you know what Mother Nature is gonna do to you at any given moment? You do remember why we call them animals, right?
Only thing worse than dying young is dying stupid. Being unprepared in life, isn’t the advice your surviving ancestors lived long enough to give you. And if your ancestors were armed, perhaps you should ask why you’re not.
I'm a bit confused on this whole thing. What good does a Glock do against mother nature? Empty a magazine into a tornado?
If you're still confused take a good hard look at the rest of the food chain that roams this planet everywhere. Then take a look down at your bare hands and let me know how well you really think you'll fare against that. Especially after the tornado rips through a natural habitat and strips the next couple weeks worth of not-you meals away from every starving creature the concrete warrior assumes they can easily outrun.
Florida man just cracked another beer in salute to a Thursday afternoon watching anothe
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Fox News really is breaking peoples brains. Crime has been slowly decreasing since the early 1990s. Covid caused a slight uptick but again it's declining. This is the safest time in history to be alive and yet one station continually says you will be violently attacked it's only a matter of time.
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Re:Move to free states. (Score:5, Informative)
The reality is that authoritarianism requires fear.
It's difficult to sell the idea of a strong leader who will protect you when you already feel safe in your community.
The Trump regime runs on Fox News, OANN, and Newsmax continually stoking people's fear of those who are different.
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Butthurt MAGA doesn't like reality. https://www.fbi.gov/news/press... [fbi.gov]
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter recorded a 2024 estimated nationwide decrease of 14.9% compared to the previous year.
In 2024, the estimated number of offenses in the revised rape category saw an estimated 5.2% decrease.
Aggravated assault figures decreased an estimated 3.0% in 2024.
Robbery showed an estimated decrease of
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Fox News really is breaking peoples brains. Crime has been slowly decreasing since the early 1990s. Covid caused a slight uptick but again it's declining. This is the safest time in history to be alive and yet one station continually says you will be violently attacked it's only a matter of time.
Its quite incredible how damn near every other station will fearmonger the living FUCK out of society over the horrific problem of gun “violence”, and how we must DO something to stop all that harm (to include disarming the innocent), while also constantly parroting that we live in the mostest safest time to be alive ever?
Forget the suicide statistics they always overlook in gun arguments. Make the horrifically peaceful violence part make sense. We either have a problem in reality, or we don
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If you had situational awareness, you would not need a weapon. Very few people have the training to have the situational awareness to avoid being kidnapped if attacked by an experienced multi-person team. This is just a new twist on an old technique. Grabbing someone and forcing them to take money from an ATM, for example. Basic rules, don't go out partying at night, stay out of questionable bars, and don't show off your wealth, particularly do not show that it is a highly liquid form like Bitcoin.
Your advice demands a certain level of economic stability.
In a Recession, that ATM theft happens in broad fucking daylight.
In a Depression, it’s the police robbing you.
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All that, PLUS, when trouble happens, don't be there.
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Are you saying that if I as a tourist go to the South, and distracted by something else fail to wave at someone, I will get shot and killed?
Does that sound like HEALTHY advertisement for your country?!
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Wow, I didn't read it that way at all. Being from the south myself, you get a lot more of the small town vibe politeness throughout the region and it carries over to other small towns across the country. Being polite is a good thing in itself, but, as pointed out, isn't a bad idea when a lot of people are indeed carrying a firearm.
Not waving isn't going to get you shot, nor is a multitude of other things a tourist very well may do. My advice to everyone is just go about your business as you normally would.
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Also, consider missing with your shot and hitting a little girl merrily going on her way to school, store, etc. And be sure to keep your lawyer on retainer should you do this. And do not forget basic gun safety, keep it locked up and away from your kids. And also keep aware of your mental health as a gun can represent a quick escape from the world. So go buy a Glock, hell buy one for yourself and 10 of your friends. They'll be friends of yours for life, yes?
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Anyone worried about this might consider buying a Glock.
Indeed.
When seconds count, the cops are only minutes away.
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The only exception is if it's your job putting you in harms way.
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If you feel the need to carry a gun, something is wrong with your life. More to the point your environment.
The only exception is if it's your job putting you in harms way.
A few years ago I was working in a clinic in the South. It was during the COVID-19 nonsense. Some woman brought her kid in and wanted the physician assistant to write a medical letter saying that the kid couldn't go to school and needed private tutoring at home. He wouldn't do it. She goes flipping crazy and starts threatening to shoot up the clinic. She then goes out in the front of the clinic and proceeds to scream obscenities for about 20 minutes.
Of course, the cops were called by about four of us in the
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I guarantee if you turned on this guy's tv it would be set to Fox News. https://abcnews.go.com/US/wire... [go.com]
Re: Move to free states. (Score:2)
I can pretty much guarantee you that a gun is next to useless. Id I'm going tontake you I'm putting a bag on your head while two other people grab your arms and lead you into a van.
You won't even have time scream and draw attention to yourself, let alone draw a gun.
If your gun is in your hand, by your side, with safety on, I'll still grab you before you fire it.
Just give them your bitcoins (Score:2)
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My Bitcoin investment is in an ETF in a brokerage account, so kidnapping me really isn't going to help you get access to it.
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Bah... it will recover. It always has in the past.
Remember 15 years ago... (Score:2)
... when everybody claimed that Bitcoin somehow offered "anonymity"... despite every transaction being available in an eternal unchangeable blockchain? (and despite the obvious attacks like the ones on bitcoin exchanges)
Looks like there's a new class of exploits, people who are stupid enough to brag about their crypto "money".
Re: Remember 15 years ago... (Score:2)
BTC is bad enough all by itself, we don't have to resort to strawmanning it based on the activity of dumb peopl
Honeytraps? (Score:2)
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Crypto really is an all corrupting dark place to get into.
Exactly.
Fed by greed and criminal activity, it is the world you dive into with coin.
Add in the ostentatious tools who want to brag about their money or coin, well expecting criminals to not go after you is naive.
It's best for everyone to maintain a low profile in this money grubbing, pop culture world. But what fun would that be for people who grub for money and worship pop culture icons? I use my money to do stuff, they use theirs for some weird clout.
Why (Score:5, Insightful)
What's the difference? (Score:4, Interesting)
What is the difference between how to not get kidnapped for your bitcoin, and how to not get kidnapped for your cash or other wealth or how to not get kidnapped for any other reason? What is the difference in techniques?
Or should the article really just be, "How to not get kidnapped" ?
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cash, gold and jewels are physical and can have size limits to stole in bit quantities, bank transfers take time and may trigger alarms or blocked, crypto can be stolen quickly, transferred to multiple accounts and get some cash out before even someone suspect you were kidnapped. that is why they are better targets
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Sure. But the question is how to prevent it, and do those prevention techniques differ based on why you might be kidnapped?
I don't see how there is any difference.
It's all common sense anyway, and mostly boils down to "keep quiet about your wealth". If nobody knows your wealthy, nobody has a reason to kidnap you to get your wealth.
I can tell you this much, nobody who looks at me walking around would EVER guess I've got close to $2M in (fairly) liquid assets. I dress plainly (most of my clothes come from Du
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well, what the conference was simply telling is that people that brag they own a fortune in crypto are putting themself at risk... and we all know some people that do that, right?! :D
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exactly!! :D
Bitcoin-collateralized loans :o (Score:2)
No s**t Sherlock
Crash (Score:3)
The way Bitcoin has been going recently, there will soon be nothing of monetary value to steal. /s
Paper (Score:3)
Put the bulk of your bitcoin in a wallet, print it out onto paper using optar or similar, and put it in a safe box in a bank. Then delete all "online" copies. No amount of torture is going to help a kidnapper.
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and safe deposit boxes are not all that strong, the vault is open all day, and if someone walks into the bank waving a gun around the the staff will step aside and let them take whatever they want.
The real security of the bank is - the cops will show up in 5 to 10min and insurance will cover whatever cash disappears. That last part importantly not so for the contents of your box if that does get cleared out. Nominally bank robbers don't go for the boxes because prying them open would use to much of that 5-
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OK, that was pretty funny. +1.
How does that old saying go (Score:3)
Money talks but wealth whispers. If you hold significant funds then keeping your mouth shut is probably the best deterrent.
“Be your own bank,” they said... (Score:2)
... No regulators, no chargebacks, no frozen accounts, just you, your keys, and a crowbar between you and irreversible settlement. They spent a decade tearing down those boring institutional layers that used to absorb fraud and violence risk, and now they’re doing workshops on how to gnaw through zip-ties. When you exit institutions but not society, you don’t get less coercion you just move the attack surface from the server rack to your ribs...
The price of wealth (Score:2)
Does a story like this make anybody else wonder if the lifestyle cost of wealth is too high? Yes, not enough money makes life inconvenient, but apparently too much money makes life inconvenient in a much more suspicious and negative way.
Living life as if every person you pass is a likely attacker and trusting no one sounds like a lot more hassle than just maintaining reasonable situational awareness and avoiding obvious danger.
I would rather my stomach hurt because I was hungry than from ulcers I got while
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Does a story like this make anybody else wonder if the lifestyle cost of wealth is too high?
The problem in this story is not the wealth, but its form. Cryptocurrency transactions are generally irreversible and not subject to the layers of process and protection that have been built up around large banking transactions. Keep your money in banks and brokerages like a sensible person and you don't have much risk.
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"Your teeth will get through anything," Mr. Kayll (Score:4, Insightful)
Now that I know this from reading TFA, the next time I find myself in the position of kidnapping someone for their Bitcoin, the first thing I'm gonna do is knock their teeth out with a pipe wrench.
Thanks, Slashdot. You've made my career of being a terrible person that much easier. :)
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I will do you one better ...
Just tie their hands behind their back. No gnawing can get one out of that ...
You owe me 20% of the Bitcoin you get that way ...
It worked in the '80s (Score:4, Funny)
Winning (Score:2)
So. Much. Winning. [slashdot.org]
Extreme Privacy (Score:2)
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why is garbage like this increasing on slashdot and real news decreasing?
These links [slashdot.org] should help answer that.
Great advice (Score:2)
I don't know what good zip ties are unless you tie the hands behind the back. There are a lot of people who would not be able to bite through zip ties anyway. It's unlikely the biting through zip ties works when there's someone monitoring you and making you stop biting through zip ties by kicking your face.
Easy fix (Score:2)
Now they will start using metal zip ties.