Questions tagged [security]
This tag should be used for questions regarding security issues with the design or implementation of Bitcoin and related cryptocurrencies.
716
questions
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15 views
Can one consider that the interest of other actors/stakeholders would change something about the concept of “blockchain”?
I am new to the Bitcoin world and am trying to get an overview within a research project. I see that Bitcoin was born out of a certain motivation to decentralize money and that decentralization, open ...
2
votes
1answer
38 views
Does mnemonic phrase contain everything in my wallet including future keys?
I am confused about something important ...
Most wallets allow wallet recovery using "Mnemonic phrase", but (in general) with this phrase, do I get access to all my data ? E.g future ...
0
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1answer
31 views
Electrum paper wallet exploit
I want to generate a paper wallet with Electrum using my personal computer that I've been using for a few years now, meaning that I'm online with it daily.
I know that the optimal solution is to use a ...
1
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1answer
24 views
How would somebody compromise my identity if I generate new receive address in Bitcoin Core?
I open Bitcoin Core and generate a new receive address.
I publish this without mentioning my name, and make every effort to conceal my identity in every other way.
Some time passes (possibly months or ...
1
vote
1answer
30 views
Do I really have to place my wallet file in the data directory?
I run bitcoin-core QT and I downloaded the full ledger data to an external HD so I can move between machines. My wallet.dat file is secured someplace else.
I start-up the QT client giving the external ...
2
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1answer
45 views
What information can an attacker gain from watching the users behavior in block chain?
Given the blockchain is a public ledger, if user chooses not not change their public key (address) every time they make a transaction, what information can an attacker gain from watching the users ...
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1answer
53 views
Someone made a small, apparently fraudulent, transaction to my public address. What is the purpose behind it?
I have a small e-commerce site and someone made three cryptocurrency purchases just seemingly to know my public addresses as she never paid the cost of goods. The three addresses she viewed are public ...
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0answers
35 views
How to best practice restoring a wallet in bitcoin core
I have a test wallet in bitcoin core that I want to play around with and get comfortable with before I move my btc from blockstream green wallet. I primarily use that wallet because so far it has been ...
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1answer
174 views
Is sharing a signed input safe?
Is it possible to decode the private key from a signed input?
For example:
From this signed input hex...
...
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1answer
26 views
What prevents me to create the longest chain and multiple nodes, and deceiving everyone?
Let's say I create the longest Blockchain for Bitcoin ever (let's assume it's possible). And then I add 50,000 nodes to the Bitcoin network and I use the aforementioned chain, wouldn't I be able to ...
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2answers
47 views
How exactly would anyone know from where I got a given “bit of Bitcoin”, or who I send it to?
Let's say I buy 0.1 BTC using Bisq. Okay, so the person I bought it from will know my name since I have to give it up to make the international bank transaction. And I will know their name because ...
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0answers
41 views
What would a bitcoin quantum resistant address look like? [duplicate]
In an hypothetical future where a quantum computer is able to break the cryptography protecting the bitcoin private key, one of the solution would be to move our coins to quantum safe resistant ...
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1answer
52 views
What kind of bug does bitcoin core possess that have to be replicated
In order to build a bitcoin client accepted by the current bitcoin nodes we to have to emulate the C++ code present in the bitcoin core client, with all its attributes even the bugs.
For example the ...
0
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2answers
31 views
Can I see the address of my direct peer?
Can I see the bitcoin address (pkh) of my directly connected peers?
I'm asking this question because if I can, I can deanonymize my peers given their IP addresses (from the TCP header) right?
If ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
Can a 'free' Bitcoin 'marketing' ad be checked in any way
Total Bitcoin newbie here. I have no bitc, nor a wallet, nor am I sure I want one. I've been intrigued for a while, but security is a big passion of mine...
Today just now youtube pointed me to an ...
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1answer
37 views
How do bitcoin nodes agree who first mined ablock?
Once transactions are broadcast and a node starts working on a proof of work, and finds it, it broadcasts it to all other nodes for that block to be verified and added onto their blockchain. All nodes ...
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1answer
43 views
How can you trust Bitcoin nodes?
If you send send a transaction request to a node, what is to to ensure that node doesn't simply log your private key and do nothing?
What is to stop the entry node from taking a transaction intended ...
2
votes
1answer
95 views
Downloading the pruned blockchain file directly from external source
Using the bitcoin client to have a pruned version of the blockchain can take a lot of time, I was wondering what would be the drawback to simply download an already pruned bitcoin blockchain file from ...
1
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1answer
104 views
My Bitcoin Core Sent Bitcoins Without My Authorisation
I am running Bitcoin Core version v0.19.0.1 (64-bit) on Windows 7, and on 27 February I noticed that it sent 0.0045 bitcoins on its own.
The wallet is encrypted at all times and I enter the ...
1
vote
1answer
61 views
Relationship of Bitcoin address and Public Key
I am trying to understand relationship between your Public Key and bitcoin address. After reading few blogs my understanding was that after generating your Master Key pair, in HD wallet. One should ...
0
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2answers
49 views
What prevents a knowledgeable person from modifying their bitcoin data?
The average person would not have the knowledge, but what is the mechanism that stops a programmer capable of writing a wallet, from modifying the local bitcoin file/data to be, for example, 10 ...
0
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0answers
37 views
similar seed words minor sequence difference
I created a wallet weeks back and seemingly restored the seed onto my other 2 devices. Recently I got to notice that I had mistakenly logged into another wallet with identical seed words but I ...
1
vote
1answer
53 views
How do i differentiate between a scam and a real bitcoin miner?
Someone offered to trade for me through bitcoin. He said i should send a bitcoin to crytomine company then he is going to claim it from the company so that he trades it with a commission of 10% of ...
2
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1answer
64 views
Is it possible to brute force the Secure Element of Ledger Nano S?
Only things I could find about this subject always tell that Ledger has a secure element like SIM cards and credit cards have. Also something about another OS running near the main application. But ...
5
votes
2answers
194 views
Can signature be re-used to cash out everything in the address?
I Know for the P2PK locking script it was like this
[pubkey] <OP_CHECKSIG>
and then an unlocking script is provided as simple as this:
[sig]
But if it works like this, others can simply grab ...
2
votes
1answer
37 views
How to add a second user with SSH access to my Ubuntu PC running Bitcoin Core?
I have a friend who is interested in learning Bitcoin CLI, and I told him I would look into giving him access to my node - in a non-destructive way - perhaps testnet only ?
Totally trust this person, ...
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2answers
57 views
What are some potential scenarios that a state actor can harm bitcoin if they control more than 51% of the hashing power?
As reported recently, China controls more than 51% of the hashing power and just in one province in China controls 54%. Assuming China has bad intentions and forces all these mining operators to ...
3
votes
1answer
79 views
Why is a 20 byte hash acceptable in p2wpkh but p2wsh needs 32 bytes?
Why is it acceptable to use a 20 byte hash to represent single-sig witness programs whereas a 32 byte hash is used for pay to witness script hash?
5
votes
1answer
249 views
How do I securely update Bitcoin Core?
I am currently running a Bitcoin Core wallet 0.18.1.
What do I need to do to update it to 0.19.0.1 version?
Would be very grateful for instructions as I am relatively new to this.
0
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1answer
40 views
Bitcoin wallets- question about control and centralization
Community,
Just a quick simple question very important for me to understand about the security of wallet types.
Are there bitcoin wallets which can shut down and block/freeze/control your bitcoin ...
0
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1answer
65 views
How long would it take for all the Bitcoin Key pairs to be calculated?
Is this even something one should be worried about?
1
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1answer
55 views
Why one miner can dig out many blocks continually in one moment?
I am new to bitcoin and blockchain, I browed the website just now. There is a question confusing me, I find that one miner dig out blocks many times even in one hour. For example, this miner dig out ...
0
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0answers
49 views
How could PSBT deal with data capacity limit of QR code?
QR code has very limited data capacity. (According to Wikipedia) one single QR code can only carry <3KB of binary data.
It's not rare for a PSBT to hit this 3KB limit, especially for ones which ...
2
votes
1answer
53 views
Address Reuse issue
I dont understand how security works with multiple address using. I am trying to guess how security works here but need some feedback, so here are a few questions, and my own guesses.
If I have total ...
2
votes
1answer
42 views
Race attack with transaction fees
let's say I run a simple race attack (say in a restaurant). I transfer BTC to the restaurant but seconds before (or after) I send the very same coins to myself. To make this deal more likely for ...
3
votes
1answer
63 views
Why can't a longer key combat quantum computers?
Google's new quantum computer performed a calculation in 3.5 minutes that would have taken 10,000 years on a normal computer (so they claim: https://www.space.com/quantum-computer-milestone-supremacy....
2
votes
2answers
271 views
How can someone lose funds in Lightning Network?
In Bitcoin once you own a private key associated with an address that had bitcoins on it, your funds are theoretically safe for ever. But on the Lightning Network, I see that once you send bitcoin to ...
5
votes
1answer
117 views
How can I protect my funds in the event a quantum computer breaks the ECDLP that Bitcoin relies on?
An interesting question was posted recently, discussing the idea of hashed addresses being (not meaningfully) quantum resistant.
As Andrew's answer on that question points out, paying to a hashed ...
1
vote
1answer
70 views
Whose to stop the coinbase devs from just draining all accounts and running of with the money?
I have been wondering, what would happen if the coinbase developers agree to drain all the funds of all their accounts and run off into hiding?
Its not like anybody will be able stop them or return ...
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2answers
136 views
Can a blockchain's transactions be reversed?
Blockchains are often described as 'immutable' (meaning the history cannot be rewritten after the fact), but is this really true? How easy is it to change the history?
I have read about the Etheruem ...
0
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1answer
93 views
Can two bitcoin transactions from a Segwit address (p2sh-p2wpkh) have a reused R value?
Good day.
I'd found these two transactions:
https://www.blockchain.com/es/btc/tx/2b08d658045724aba40b58690ad84ec2af1f01ab58df37387dadd2b27789f44c
and
https://www.blockchain.com/es/btc/tx/...
3
votes
1answer
40 views
Could a malicious attacker subvert the Bitcoin network by failing to create a block?
I know its astronomically improbable, but say a malicious node "wins" the proof of work inherent to the Bitcoin protocol. If a malicious node simply waited indefinitely, or maliciously disconnected ...
0
votes
2answers
96 views
Is the 51% attack the only technical reason no country will adopt Bitcoin as a state currency? [closed]
Is the 51% attack the only technical reason no country will adopt Bitcoin as a state currency?
Lets suppose a country with GDP size less than 300 Billion USD adopt the Bitcoin as an official currency. ...
0
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4answers
118 views
How the blockchain knows that its been tampered with?
I know that the transactions stay in the block and hashed alongside few other things and that hash is stored in the next block. And I understand that if you try to tamper with one of the transactions, ...
0
votes
1answer
33 views
Beneficial proofs of work [duplicate]
I'm new to this community and a Bitcoin novice.
I believe to have understood the concept and purpose of proof of work but also, that the high energy consumption of proofs of work is a major problem ...
0
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0answers
49 views
BIP32 HD Wallet vs HMAC vs Hashing
I've been working on a website which will be caring out various cryptographic operations. On the website users can post Ads. Each Ad has a monotonically increasing unique ID. For each Ad, I would like ...
3
votes
2answers
115 views
Why is no security lost by using 32-byte public keys in Schnorr signatures instead of 33?
There is currently a discussion on the mailing list about truncating the 33rd byte from public keys when used in bip-schnorr.
Public keys are (x, y) coordinates and compressed public keys simply ...
2
votes
1answer
60 views
Why doesn't the Bitcoin-qt client ask for the Wallet passphrase upon startup?
I've just encrypted my wallet.dat file using the "Settings -> Encrypt Wallet" menu option.
I then closed the client and re-opened it.
I was expecting to be prompted to put in the wallet password ...
1
vote
2answers
24 views
Organization to keep track of wrongfully obtained bitcoins
I am curious whether there are any organizations that are actively trying to monitor bitcoins from illegal sources.
I understand that 'when done properly' you can make bitcoins practically untraceable,...
1
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1answer
122 views
Prove that xpub matches xprv?
I'm researching a paper wallet system where I generate an HD xpub/xprv
using an offline laptop. I write down the xprv by hand. I capture the
xpub via QR code using my phone, to transfer to an online ...
