Blockchain.info, I've got some issues...

[hodginsa]

So for starters, somehow my blockchain.info was compromised. I think it was because of a forum I randomly signed up to without thinking... Anyway, My own fault I accept resposibility, I don't really use it, but I had lost .4 btc out of it. leaving it with about 0.05xxxx. Someone had gotten in and taken my bitcoins, so those are gone.

I made it more secure added the text notification/authentication to log in, added a log, and a bunch of stuff just for security, and to see if someone would try to relog back in. And nothing! Well today I had the rest of the 0.05 taken out of my account, but I was given zero text notification or authentication code. I'm so very confused because when I go to log in, it asks for my text code, but it didn't for the person who hacked my account? how is this so?

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[1713580769]

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[proudhon]

So for starters, somehow my blockchain.info was compromised. I think it was because of a forum I randomly signed up to without thinking... Anyway, My own fault I accept resposibility, I don't really use it, but I had lost .4 btc out of it. leaving it with about 0.05xxxx. Someone had gotten in and taken my bitcoins, so those are gone.

I made it more secure added the text notification/authentication to log in, added a log, and a bunch of stuff just for security, and to see if someone would try to relog back in. And nothing! Well today I had the rest of the 0.05 taken out of my account, but I was given zero text notification or authentication code. I'm so very confused because when I go to log in, it asks for my text code, but it didn't for the person who hacked my account? how is this so?

If they got in once, they could have just taken the private key associated with those coins.  After that, they don't need to log in to blockchain.info to spend them.

[lettucebee]

Okay, I must admit I am completely ignorant of the idea of a private key and how it relates to bitcoin.

I thought one had to protect one's WALLET.  Do I need to protect something at blockchain.info?

Thanks.

[farlack]

Your private key pretty much makes your wallet. If they have your key, they can re-create your wallet and load your coins to themself.

[hodginsa]

Gotcha, thanks! and pardon my french ****.

Is there a way to kill an account? haha

[proudhon]

The wallet jargon is just a convenient way to refer to what's going on under the hood.  Every Bitcoin address has an associated private key, and the private key is really just a string of numbers and letters.  If you happen to find somebody else's private key, then you can import it into other Bitcoin clients or even another block chain dot info wallet and then you have the ability to spend any coins associated with that private key.  I think it's really important that people understand that. 

[hodginsa]

That is very well explained, thank you.
So you only need the private key? not the private and public key?

So basically someone could steal the private key, watch as you make bitcoins(without you knowing), and wait to spend them. Which is why its important to encrypt your wallet I'm assuming.

What if you encrypt it after they have stolen it?

[farlack]

What if you encrypt it after they have stolen it?

Not quite, it would be like having a debit card linked to your bank, and someone coming into your un-open safe, taking your debit card, copying it, then you just putting a lock on your safe and your spare debit card back inside the locked safe.
He still has the unlocked debit card.

[lettucebee]

But is there more to protecting the private key than what I do already to protect the wallet?

[mintybits]

But is there more to protecting the private key than what I do already to protect the wallet?

The best way is to generate a paper wallet OFFLINE using a site like bitaddress then send your coins from blockchain to the paper...

[proudhon]

But is there more to protecting the private key than what I do already to protect the wallet?

If you want to protect against theft, yes.  If you're using blockchain.info you should have 2 factor auth enabled, at least.  Remember always to use strong unique passwords for everything.

[kgo]

That is very well explained, thank you.
So you only need the private key? not the private and public key?

The public key is derived from the private key.  You can figure out what any public key is given the private key.

[ufmace]

What's more important is that if you have any indication or suspicion that your private key might be compromised, you move all of your (remaining) bitcoins at that address to a new one after you secure your account so that the attacker cannot login again.