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June 18, 2020, 07:57:07 PM |
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Yeah, due to the compatibility of QubesOS, and various different hardware out there it can be difficult sourcing an affordable option, and it may be easier for physical isolation as you mentioned. Although, I've never really sat down, and found out the specifics since most of my computers are currently have the required virtualization capability, and are on the certified hardware list. There are some ThinkPads out there that you can get for a fairly decent price considering the hardware present, but considering most people won't use the virtualization capability for anything other than this it might be a big compromise to make. Physical isolation might be better in that regard, although then there's the issue of having two separate computers for two different things, and really the Bitcoin one if you're going to that extent should only be used for limited things involved with Bitcoin.
Privacy is a massive ball ache as to keep it realistic, and not annoying you are going to compromise on certain things. I've had this debate in my head for many years, and I almost always end up compromising on some front. Obviously, an offline computer is a great option for privacy, although factoring into equation what you're going to be using Bitcoin for. If its just for Holding as per this thread, then a offline computer is perfect. However, if you want to use Bitcoin more like the currency it is, and send transactions you're unfortuantly going to need to compromise on privacy at some point. That's where the isolation comes into play, and physicial isolation would be the go too as pointed out above. However, depending on your situation an operating system such as QubesOS (Others are available) might be worth looking into if you're frequently needing to access Bitcoin related things. Then comes into the whole debate whether a hardware wallet would be good for security sake if you're wanting to access your funds regularly on a live computer, and then you trusting a third party through their software, and hardware.
Privacy, and security is a massive worm hole that you could delve in for weeks. Every now, and again I have a complete revamp of my security, where I look to improve upon it, and there's currently many many things I want to get sorted. As an example of someone looking into privacy. and security considerations; You've decided upon using two computers, that both will access the internet, but one of them is using isolation through software. Then you would need to trust the very manufacturers of the hardware. This is where you start to enter the world of tinfoil hats, but its probably a legitimate consideration if you want to take privacy that seriously. The easiest example I can give, is when people store Bitcoin on their phones (which I would recommend against not only for the following reasons) you are trusting the operating system designed by either apple or android. Android is partly open source, but there are large parts of the operating system which is closed source. So, whatever operating system you choose whether its android, windows 10, Ubuntu, or QubesOS you need to be able to trust it. Luckily, completely open source software does exist, but the most popular operating system as of today (Windows 10) is not.
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