Bitcoin Forum

http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1flsxd/blockchaininfo_sweep_keys_function_sent_my_6_btc/

http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1flsml/i_just_received_6btc_out_of_nowhere_to_my/

Check the transactions the addressees match up! Hilarity ensures

Blabla online wallets blabla more secure blabla

Lulz

the great karma conspiracy of 2013?

Blabla desktop clients more secure blabla :)

couldn't possibly be user error http://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/comments/1flsml/i_just_received_6btc_out_of_nowhere_to_my/cabjsah

Always use disposable wallets when participating in any bitcoin treasure hunts.

I don't get what happened? Why has his BTC exposed just because he was participating in the contest?

Both users imported the same private key from the contest into their wallet. Anyone with the key can spends funds at a bitcoin address. So..

User No. 1, forgetting the about the contest, sent 6 BTC to the address. User No 2. who also has that address in his wallet briefly thinks he has randomly received 6 BTC. Unknown user No. 3 quickly moves the coins to a new address so User 1 & 2 can no longer access them.

g'day mate

Thank you that explains everything.

+bitcointip piuk $(-1) verify

In comparison, this is Reddit's explanation: https://i.imgur.com/m06FWWR.gif

you are using arch ? if so don't mix bitcoin and AUR packages, random people can add random packages to the repo and up-vote easily with very little checks. (I had a bad experience with those, now I double check sources and do things manually to be more secure ...)

Who talked about desktop clients? Definitely not me.

To try and avoid this happening again in future there is now a clearer warning when importing private keys:

https://i.imgur.com/DxtbAl8.png

Amazing stuff haha

piuk is on top of things as always!  The blockchain.info wallet just keeps getting better and better.

There are already warning everywhere saying "Do not trust AUR packages, they can do anything they want."

Do you read the PKGBUILD every time you install a package from the AUR. Such as yaourt and Packer suggest you look at the install script every time you install something.

+1 piuk
Interesting that a little competition brought about this.   

I just want to be sure I understand this clearly.

You have a wallet with 2 private keys added.
Address1 is your primary address that you use all the time. Secret private key.
Address2 is used in a contest. Many people know the key.

If bitcoins are received at Address1 does this mean that people who have the key to Address2 can see and transfer them because it went to the same wallet?
Or is it that only coins sent to the address with the shared key can be seen by multiple people?

I don't know what other peoples feelings are but with 2fa, secure passwords and codes with onscreen keyboards used to stop any transactions occurring without my knowledge, I trust blockchain.info far more than my own ability to secure a computer. Also all of the other security features that exist too like disable tor access. It is great!

So I agree! Blabla desktop wallets blabla more secure blabla

Trolls

No. You must have the private key of the address to spend/move the coins at that address.


This, kindof.  Everyone can "see" the coins at every address at any time.  What happened here was that the private key for the address was known by more than one person so more than one person could spend the BTC at the address.

All the BTC at every address can be seen by everyone - hence "public address"

The BTC can only be spent (sent to another public address) by the person that has the corresponding private key.  Once the private key is no longer private then everyone who has the private key is in a race to move the BTC to another address they own (have the private key for).

 

Thanks for clearing that up.