‘Bitcoin Family’ Tightens Security in Response to Surge in Crypto-Related Crime

Key Takeaways:

• The Bitcoin Family splits encrypted seed phrases into parts, hidden across several continents.
• Hot wallets use multi-signature security, while cold storage hardware wallets keep long-term crypto assets completely offline.
• The new security setup follows a 17-day abduction of an Italian investor targeted for Bitcoin access.

Didi Taihuttu, the dad behind the “Bitcoin Family,” has changed how he protects his crypto. A June 7 report says he now splits his private keys across four continents. The move follows a rise in crypto-related crimes, including theft, kidnapping, and scams, targeting wealthy holders. He’s not taking risks.

Have Hardware Wallets Fallen Behind in the Fight Against Crypto Crimes?

The Bitcoin Family has upgraded their crypto security beyond hardware wallets. In an exclusive CNBC interview, Didi Taihuttu revealed their new global protection system, a hybrid of analog and digital safeguards.

The family’s new system involves encrypting a 24-word seed phrase, splitting it up, and storing the pieces across four continents. 

🚨 SECURITY ALERT: Didi Taihuttu of the 'Bitcoin Family' is leveling up their digital asset security! 🔒 With rising crypto crimes, they now split their seed phrase across 4 continents and store 65% of their assets in cold storage. Stay safe out there, fam! 💪 #Bitcoin $BTC

— 🤖 ChainGPT AI Agent (@ChainGPTAI) June 8, 2025

Some are locked within blockchain-based storage services. Others are physically hidden in locations from Europe to South America. Taihuttu described it as part-digital, part-offline. A system designed for resilience.

For years, the Bitcoin Family stored hardware wallets in various secret places. Some were tucked away in rental apartments across Europe. Others sat locked inside storage units in South America.

It was unconventional, but it worked. Until it didn’t.

Now, Taihuttu believes that hardware wallets, which have long been seen as the gold standard in crypto protection, may no longer be enough. And worse, they might be creating new risks.

He explained that if someone held him at gunpoint, he could be forced to hand over the contents of a hardware wallet. The same goes for hot wallets on a phone. 

But with their new system, even under threat, he can’t give access to the full stash. No single person can.

In such a situation, Taihuttu reiterated that all they’ll receive is a small amount in their phone wallet. The rest remains out of reach. Distributed. Hidden. Safe.

Hardware wallets store everything in one device. That makes them a target. If someone gains physical access and uses violence to force the owner’s hand, their job is done. 

The wallet becomes a one-step path to millions. That’s the problem. Hardware wallets secure crypto from hackers. But not from a criminal with a gun.

Kidnapping: The New Go-To Crime for Quick Crypto Payouts

The Bitcoin Family’s new approach to security comes as kidnapping becomes the latest tactic in the growing wave of crypto crimes.

Criminals are no longer just chasing passwords. They’re chasing people.

On May 6, two men, Duplessie and Matthew Woeltz, kidnapped a 28-year-old Italian crypto investor in New York. They held him hostage for 17 days. 

Things escalated on May 23. The victim told the men he’d give up his Bitcoin credentials. But when they left the room to grab a laptop, he ran and flagged down a traffic officer. That moment saved his life.

William Duplessie is the second man arrested in kidnapping & torture of an Italian citizen at a townhouse in Nolita when he wouldn’t give up his bitcoin password. First suspect, John Woeltz, is known as the crypto king of Kentucky. Relationship between the 3 is unknown. @1010WINS pic.twitter.com/hb3gaca1mD

— Mack Rosenberg (@MackRosenberg) May 27, 2025

Just a week later, on May 31, Paris prosecutors charged 25 suspects linked to violent, crypto-related abductions. In one case, attackers tried to kidnap the family of Pierre Noizat, CEO of French exchange Paymium. 

In January, David Balland, the co-founder of crypto hardware company Ledger, was kidnapped along with his wife. Their attackers didn’t just demand crypto. They cut off Balland’s finger and filmed it. 

🔴 OFFICIAL

David Balland co-founder of @Ledger has been released, after being kidnapped on Tuesday

To avoid threatening the ongoing investigation, we had decided not to reveal anything about what had been happening in recent hours

But the Paris public prosecutor's office has…

— Grégory Raymond 🐳 (@gregory_raymond) January 23, 2025

The video was sent to his business partner, with a ransom request attached. These crimes indicate that crypto no longer lives only online. It’s now a real-world danger. 

A threat that can break into your home. Tear apart your family. And reach far beyond the screen. This is the reality the Bitcoin Family is preparing for.