Should Bitcoin Users Trust Hosted Wallets?
In bitcoin's early days, there were not many options for storing coins: users had to download the Bitcoin-QT client to keep the cryptocurrency. That way, the platform storing the wallet provided as much security as the user required, with the option of keeping the client offline and encrypted - away from prying eyes searching for private keys. In the past few years, though, bitcoin has moved off the PC desktop onto web services and mobile wallets. And many of these hosted wallets, as they are called, are managed by a third party. Users relying on hosted wallets are, in essence, depending....
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The CEO and Co-founder of Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, was the first to mention rumors of a clampdown on self-hosted crypto wallets. For those who don't know – self-hosted crypto wallets (also known as non-custodial wallets or self-custody wallets) are a type of software that lets individuals store and use their own cryptocurrency, instead of needing […]
A new 'roll-your-own' bitcoin wallet project showcased at the Bitcoin 2013 conference last weekend. Coinpunk is a web application that allows anyone to run their own self-hosted Bitcoin wallet service, accessible from their browser. Until now, online bitcoin wallet services have been hosted by third parties, meaning that users have to trust them with their bitcoins. If the third party is hacked or experiences some other technical problem, users could lose their bitcoins. The alternative is a mobile application, but iPhone and iPad users are out of luck - Apple won't allow them in its app....
Four U.S. lawmakers have sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, warning of the risks of restricting the use of self-hosted cryptocurrency wallets. Their concerns follow reports that the Treasury Department may be on the verge of imposing such strict cryptocurrency regulations aimed at self-hosted crypto wallets. Crypto Regulations That Could Make Existing Self-Hosted Wallet Users Criminals U.S. Congressmen Warren Davidson, Tom Emmer, Ted Budd, and Scott Perry sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Wednesday outlining their “concern regarding reports that....
Few consumers are using digital wallets - just 2% according to recent data from Gallup - and those who don't say concerns about security are the reason. Despite enthusiasm among financial tech observers and investors for digital wallets, it seems few users are enthused. Other studies suggest that while many consumers have heard about mobile wallets, overall adoption is low. New data released by Gallup adds to this canon, finding little interest for digital wallets - software that ostensibly enables easier payment via electronic means. Why? Fifty-five percent of those who don't use digital....
One of the challenges of storing bitcoin securely is finding the appropriate tradeoff between security and convenience. On one end of the spectrum, hosted online wallets make it super simple to store your bitcoin online and access them from any computer by logging in with a username and password. However, this means that your account can be compromised easily by an attacker who learns your email and password. This also means that you must trust your hosted wallet provider to offer appropriate security measures. On the high-security end of the spectrum, paper wallets allow you to store....