Questions tagged [address]

Tells a user how to pay a recipient. Bitcoin addresses are strings consisting of numbers and letters that begin with '1', '3', or 'bc1'. Addresses encode the recipient's output script that includes either a public key or a hash of a public key or script. Bitcoin addresses should not be confused with mailing addresses or IP addresses.

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140 votes
11 answers
81k views

Is it possible to brute force bitcoin address creation in order to steal money?

Bitcoin users frequently generate new addresses for each transaction they make, which greatly increases the number of bitcoin addresses being used to receive money. Would it be possible (and ...
nmat's user avatar
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73 votes
4 answers
37k views

What is a compressed Bitcoin key?

The standard Bitcoin client in version 0.6 apparently introduces compressed keys. What are they? Are there any drawbacks to using them? Any incompatibilities with older software? Reductions in ...
Thilo's user avatar
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69 votes
5 answers
74k views

What happens if your bitcoin client generates an address identical to another person's?

Here's a what-if scenario: Person A has a Bitcoin address with 25BTC. Person B opens up their Bitcoin client: which may or may not have the complete blockchain (the latter would mean no copies of ...
Austin Burk's user avatar
  • 1,109
52 votes
3 answers
70k views

What's the difference between a wallet and an address?

Bitcoin seems to have the concept of a wallet and an address. Are they the same thing? If not, how do they differ?
Colin Dean's user avatar
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45 votes
3 answers
16k views

Why does Bitcoin send the "change" to a different address?

For example I have an address (A) with 20 BTC and send 9 BTC to address (B). Bitcoin will create a "change" portion of the transaction where the remaining 11 BTC goes to address (C). Why not send ...
DeathAndTaxes's user avatar
42 votes
7 answers
41k views

What happens if I mistype the address when making a payment?

I sent bitcoins to an address, but I think I made a typo when I copied it. Where did these bitcoins go. Can I get them back?
lemonginger's user avatar
  • 5,432
40 votes
3 answers
16k views

What is a stealth address?

Stealth addresses are mentioned in the context of privacy of bitcoin transactions. What are they and how would they work? Can they provide 100% anonymity?
Emre K.'s user avatar
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39 votes
2 answers
10k views

What are Green Addresses?

What are Green Addresses? Is it true that they can solve the "confirmation delay" problem, and how does that work? Are there any drawbacks?
Thilo's user avatar
  • 4,759
37 votes
10 answers
29k views

How is it possible to launder bitcoins?

Some services, such as bitcoinlaundry.com, claim that they can launder your bitcoins. Since all bitcoin transactions are publicly logged, how is this done? Wouldn't it be possible to trace back the ...
nmat's user avatar
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35 votes
1 answer
10k views

Why are Bitcoin addresses hashes of public keys?

Currently, Bitcoin addresses and their checksums are constructed from the public key by a using repeated hashing with SHA256 and RIPEMD160. Now I understand the reasoning behind using hashing for ...
Noah's user avatar
  • 1,479
34 votes
5 answers
18k views

Why does Bitcoin use two hash functions (SHA-256 and RIPEMD-160) to create an address?

Why do we use 2 hash functions (both SHA and RIPEMD) to create an address? Why not just use one hash function?
anapaso's user avatar
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30 votes
5 answers
19k views

How are public & private keys in an address created?

I understand the high level concept I am more interested specific details. How is a private key generated. How exactly is public key generated, how is address generated from public key.
DeathAndTaxes's user avatar
27 votes
2 answers
8k views

How many Bitcoin addresses are/have been carrying a balance?

Bitcoin addresses can be generated at will, and the theoretical limit to their number is high. Addresses are constantly being generated to receive funds or balance transactions, but they are also ...
Joseph Tanenbaum's user avatar
25 votes
1 answer
16k views

How secure is blockchain.info?

How secure is using a wallet on blockchain.info? How do you evaluate the different sites that provide wallets?
B Seven's user avatar
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25 votes
3 answers
9k views

Why does Bitcoin support both compressed and uncompressed keys/addresses?

My question is about the difference between compressed keys and addresses, and i know it was addressed in another question but my question is less about the theory and more about how the keys are used ...
leximus prime's user avatar
23 votes
5 answers
28k views

How do you send to multiple addresses by paying a one time fee? Which wallet supports this?

I have 20+ addresses I need to payout to. How can I send to all of these addresses without having to do it one at a time and paying a fee for each? Which desktop and mobile wallet supports this type ...
Patoshi パトシ's user avatar
22 votes
3 answers
20k views

What are the minimum and maximum lengths of a Mainnet Bitcoin address?

I'm getting mixed answers on this question. For example, this source says addresses vary between 27 and 34 characters in length. The Wiki says 26-35 characters. Neither source cites something that ...
Rich Apodaca's user avatar
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21 votes
2 answers
12k views

How will multisig addresses work?

How will multisig addresses work? Will they consist of multiple traditional addresses, or will they have some different structure? Will one be able to specify whether they will require 2 out of 2, 2 ...
ThePiachu's user avatar
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21 votes
2 answers
5k views

The Bitcoin.it wiki says addresses do not carry balances...but all info suggests otherwise

The Bitcoin wiki states, "Addresses are not wallets nor accounts, and do not carry balances." Yet, there's a zillion articles online about Bitcoin address balances, the Bitcoin blockchain explorers ...
Howiecamp's user avatar
  • 315
21 votes
4 answers
21k views

How are different addresses generated from the same private key?

I was reading in the "Technical background of version 1 Bitcoin addresses" that addresses are a function of the private key. More or less: Private Key -> Public Key -> Address If the ...
ciczan's user avatar
  • 313
20 votes
2 answers
7k views

Why do you use Bitcoin addresses instead of public keys?

Why do you hash the public key twice? Are there security benefits to abstracting away from the public key? Is it because the address can represent multiple things? I'm missing something. Could you ...
ihtkwot's user avatar
  • 331
20 votes
5 answers
2k views

Is there an easy way to give people a Bitcoin address?

I see that Bitcoin addresses have built in checksums that helps prevent typos (ie. it is highly unlikely that you can mistype a Bitcoin address and have it still be valid). However, I still think the ...
lemonginger's user avatar
  • 5,432
19 votes
7 answers
12k views

What is the longest known vanity address generated?

Anyone can generate a vanity address of arbitrary length with appropriate tools, it's just a matter of performing enough computations. What is the longest known vanity address anyone has generated?
ThePiachu's user avatar
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19 votes
2 answers
10k views

Can two private keys generate the same (public) Bitcoin address?

I know that private key is generated randomly by wallet. Is it possible that wallet generate the same address which is used in Bitcoin? In other words: Given two private keys ka ≠ kb, is it ...
user3473712's user avatar
18 votes
7 answers
20k views

Is it possible to figure out whether two addresses are in the same wallet?

I'm wondering, if I sent some bitcoins from one of my own addresses to another address in my wallet, will it be possible for someone to figure out that both addresses are in the same wallet? Or can I ...
KoKo's user avatar
  • 509
17 votes
5 answers
14k views

How to validate a Bitcoin address is a real one?

Is there a code snippet that validates a bitcoin address? I'm looking for both javascript and java snippets. The code should support both testnet and real addresses.
ripper234's user avatar
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17 votes
2 answers
36k views

What's the difference between `z-addr` and `t-addr` type addresses?

I was playing with the zcash testnet and figured there are two different types of addresses available: z and t. Is this a privacy feature? What's the difference between z-addr and t-addr type ...
q9f's user avatar
  • 1,445
16 votes
3 answers
6k views

Why is P2PKH used instead of the simpler P2PK?

If elliptic curve cryptography is secure enough to be able to give away a public key without fear of anyone being able to calculate our private key from it, what's the reason for hashing our public ...
inersha's user avatar
  • 3,063
16 votes
3 answers
25k views

How to get all addresses - including the "change" addresses - from bitcoind?

I want to get all my addresses - including the auto-generated "change" addresses - from a running bitcoind somehow. I haven't been able to do it in a simple way. "getaddressesbyaccount" and all the ...
Karel Bílek's user avatar
  • 2,695
16 votes
2 answers
182k views

Check how much money there is in my Bitcoin address/wallet

Is there a website or service that can quickly lookup how much bitcoins are there in a given wallet/address, so I can look up my own wallet from a friend's computer which doesn't have the Bitcoin ...
sashoalm's user avatar
  • 429
16 votes
2 answers
3k views

Is a wallet just a collection of private and public keys?

There is a fundamental bitcoin concept I don't get. Am I correct in that all I "need" to send and receive money are a single address and its associated private key? In other words, can't I just ...
Jimbob's user avatar
  • 161
15 votes
4 answers
4k views

What is the Bitcoin equivalent of /dev/null?

Which canonical address is a legitimate address that nobody can claim?
ripper234's user avatar
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14 votes
1 answer
3k views

What are the potential attacks against ECDSA that would be possible if we used raw public keys as addresses?

According to this answer about why addresses are hashes rather than public keys there are potential attacks that are possible if you have the public key rather than the address, what are these attacks?...
Leah Cornelius's user avatar
14 votes
3 answers
17k views

Do faucets actually work?

Doing a simple Google search shows that there are many places on the Internet that say that they give out free bitcoins. All you need to do is give them your deposit address and confirm that you're ...
user avatar
14 votes
5 answers
709 views

Why does the standard Bitcoin client not display the balance per address?

Any Bitcoin wallet holds several bitcoin addresses. Such addresses are either generated manually from the GUI addressbook or automatically collecting the "change" of a "Send" transaction. The total ...
Jan's user avatar
  • 1,000
14 votes
2 answers
2k views

What is the safest method managing a large number of receiving Bitcoin addresses?

Say I want to run a big project, where users can continually request new addresses to deposit Bitcoins in their online account. I suppose I will have to pre-generate thousands of Bitcoin key-pairs and ...
user10507's user avatar
  • 141
14 votes
1 answer
12k views

How to get a bitcoin address's balance?

I know blockchain.info has an API: https://blockchain.info/q/addressbalance/134dV6U7gQ6wCFbfHUz2CMh6Dth72oGpgH gets the bitcoin address's balance,but it's not open source and must connect to the ...
Gank's user avatar
  • 275
13 votes
3 answers
1k views

What's stopping someone from taking over all the bitcoin addresses?

Anyone can generate unlimited bitcoin addresses. Presumably, there's a limited number of these (even if it's a very very large number). What's stopping someone from taking over all the bitcoin ...
thanks_in_advance's user avatar
13 votes
1 answer
6k views

How to create a Bech32 address from a public key?

What are the steps to create a Bech32 address from an ECDSA public key? Bitcoin wiki has a nice step-by-step guide to create an address from a public key but what about Bech32 addresses? I've read ...
Mike D's user avatar
  • 3,569
13 votes
1 answer
5k views

How can I use the vanity name generator to look for an address?

How do you use the vanity name generator to look for an address? Is there an estimate on how long it takes to find addresses of varying lengths and complexities?
lemonginger's user avatar
  • 5,432
13 votes
1 answer
1k views

What is the meaning of the Bitcoin address version?

Bitcoin address versions are described on the Address wiki page: Normal addresses currently always start with 1, though this might change in a future version. Testnet addresses usually start with m ...
Ash Moran's user avatar
  • 849
12 votes
3 answers
9k views

How can I generate a large number of Bitcoin addresses?

I would like to generate a large number of public Bitcoin addresses (several hundred thousand) quickly and efficiently into a simple text file. What would be the easiest way to get this done? I'm just ...
Gary's user avatar
  • 7,593
12 votes
5 answers
1k views

How to instantly give people a pre-filled wallet to introduce them to Bitcoin?

As a Bitcoin evangelist I like to introduce Bitcoin to my friends, and if possible even get them involved by having them own a few coins themselves. The settlement of a personal debt through Bitcoin ...
Joseph Tanenbaum's user avatar
12 votes
2 answers
6k views

Why do all addresses begin with "1"? Why can't we just delete it?

The title is the question :) All the addresses I have seen - from the very first block http://blockexplorer.com/b/0 to the very last one http://blockexplorer.com/b/229850 all begin with "1". Why is ...
Karel Bílek's user avatar
  • 2,695
12 votes
5 answers
5k views

What would happen if you send bitcoins to a non-existent Bitcoin address?

If one were to send bitcoins to an address that has not been created yet, what would happen? Would the coins be lost forever? Would they just sit there until the address and key pair are generated?
Sam Weinberg's user avatar
12 votes
2 answers
3k views

How to get addresses from scriptPubKey in segwit transactions?

I'm running through raw transaction data, and I'd like to be able to gather addresses (where possible). So far, I've made this diagram to help me understand when it's possible to figure out addresses ...
inersha's user avatar
  • 3,063
11 votes
3 answers
4k views

Transaction with Multiple Inputs having Same Address

Why do transactions have multiple inputs with the same address? Is it because the amounts were obtained in the address through multiple separate transactions. Shouldn't the amounts be clubbed to a ...
Ni9elF's user avatar
  • 150
11 votes
3 answers
755 views

How can I find out the address my payment will come from?

Can I find out the address I am going send from before making a payment? And could this be useful for merchants that want to identify my transaction?
nmat's user avatar
  • 11.5k
11 votes
2 answers
672 views

Is there a recommended maximum number of transactions any one address should ever receive?

The pool I am with has sent about twenty transactions to one address I gave as a 'send to' addy. Could this one address just go on and on taking more and more of these transactions? A hundred of them? ...
user189's user avatar
  • 303
11 votes
4 answers
20k views

Is it possible to use xpub address to monitor balance from previously generated addresses?

I'm trying to find a way where I can view balance of my ledger nano s wallet without always attaching it to computer all the time. I found something called xpub address which allows me to generate ...
Ilja's user avatar
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