5 ms·
Here's some ways to fix this and why it won't be a problem: - Add encryption of the wallet and a password to the Bitcoin client and daemon. This is already bei
by shazow 15y ago
Here's some ways to fix this and why it won't be a problem:
- Add encryption of the wallet and a password to the Bitcoin client and daemon.
This is already being worked on and there is working prototype. It should be in the mainstream client very soon.
Wallet Private Key Encryption: http://forum.bitcoin.org/index.php?topic=8728.0 http://forum.bitcoin.org/index.php?topic=8728.0
- Start trusted centralized institutions that hold your Bitcoins and protect them (maybe even give you a bit of interest growth).
There are already numerous online eWallets that you can use—if you choose to keep your cash on your person then it's your decision and you should acknowledge the risks.
List of eWallets: https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Category:EWallets https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Category:EWallets
- gojomo 15y agoWallet encryption isn't any help against keyloggers and other local malware that can observe your use of the wallet. And wallet encryption simple enough for average folks — a short passphrase of their own choosing - is easy for digital pickpockets to crack.
- wmf 15y agoSince Bitcoin miners have awesome GPUs, malware could use the victim's own GPU to crack their wallet. (And then go back to mining... for the malware owner.)
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- shazow 15y agoIf there's a malicious keylogger on your computer, your Bitcoin wallet is probably the last of your worries.
- cageface 15y agoActually, if I have tens of thousands of dollars or more in Bitcoins it's likely to be the very first of my worries.
- shazow 15y agoI suppose if I had tens of thousands of dollars or more in Linden Dollars, my Second Life password would be the first of my worries. What about your passwords to your real-life bank accounts? Or logins to confidential company data? Or emails? If you're the paranoid type and have two-factor auth for all these things, why not Bitcoin?
- furyg3 15y agoThere's a key difference here: If I get hacked, I loose all my BitCoins. If my bank gets hacked, sucks for them.
- rmc 15y agoWhat about your passwords to your real-life bank accounts? Your bank has ways to make that more secure. If someone logs into your account from a strange IP (e.g. different country from the bank and customer), if someone tries to transfer money online, you might need to enter another password (which they might not have), or it might be based on a fob that generates a code. If you do manage to transfer money to your account, they can now follow the money to find out where you are and arrest you. BitCoin stealing doesn't have any of these drawbacks, so is probably a much more tempting target.
- pavel_lishin 15y ago> Wallet encryption isn't any help against keyloggers Same can be said about bank accounts, unless you're using 2-factor auth with a dongle.
- gojomo 15y agoBank accounts usually limit online transfer destinations and amounts. So password secrecy is not the sole defense, and even total ownership of an accountholder's computer is not quite 'game over' for their balances, as it is with a bitcoin wallet.
- rmc 15y ago(maybe even give you a bit of interest growth) You can't really do interest with BitCoins, since it's a fixed amount. Deflation is built in, so in way just holding the BTC will make them 'grow' in value.