Where do you store most of your coins for long term storage?

[tvbcof]

It's actually probably a bit dumb to say anything about one's BTC storage methods...and a bit rude to ask.

That said, I've spouted off about my techniques off and one.  Now I regret doing so to some extent.

[1715165683]

1715165683

[1715165683]

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[Rassah]

Paper wallet for cold storage

There is another option missing: Casascius Coins ^^

Both are bad ideas imho: totally vulnerable to theft, burglary, fire or otherwise loss of coins. And in case of Casascius Coins: can't back them up.

Use multiple copies of paper wallets/backups, store in multiple secure places. In case of theft, it'll take a while for the thieves to crack the safe, giving you time to move the money elsewhere.

[QuestionAuthority]

Paper wallet for cold storage

There is another option missing: Casascius Coins ^^

Both are bad ideas imho: totally vulnerable to theft, burglary, fire or otherwise loss of coins. And in case of Casascius Coins: can't back them up.

Every btc I mined or purchased through 2011 and 2012 (with the exception of the few I keep on my keychain - about $2000 worth) is in cold storage. Now you might guess that I have more than just a few in a paper wallet. You don't really think I wrote it once on a cocktail napkin and threw it in the kitchen junk drawer do you? LOL

Now, if etotheipi dies, they discontinue Armory, it is no longer available anywhere on the web and I lose my copy I'm probably screwed but I can't really see that happening.

[🏰 TradeFortress 🏰]

You can also store a bulk of them in assets. A keylogger probably isn't going to care about your 2K ASICMINER shares.

[ArticMine]

Here are some places I use as part of a highly redundant Bitcoin backup strategy.

1) 3.5in floppy disks
2) 5.25in floppy disks
3) The hard drives of multiple computers from the most recent to some very old computers including a 30 year old 286, and an old Pentium 1 computer running Windows 3.1. The latter is the only computer running a version of Microsoft Windows that I use for anything related to Bitcoin.
4) Removable USB 3 hard drives
5) 1) + 4) stored in a bank safety deposit box
6) Encrypt the file and store it on multiple email and cloud services in different jurisdictions worldwide.

The idea is to be able to recover the Bticoins under many different scenarious from the mundane hard drive failure to a disaster affecting one's local community or country where not only is one's home wiped out but also one's bank safety deposit box etc.

2) is one of my favorites and is particularly suitable for storing unencrypted private keys. The idea is that if the floppy is stolen one has time to empty the wallet while an attacker is still figuring out how to read the 5.25in floppy disk. To further slow down an attacker  one can hide the floppy containing the Bitcoin keys among many old 5.25in floppy disks forcing an attacker to have to read multiple old floppy disks in order to find the golden needle in the obsolete digital haystack.

[🏰 TradeFortress 🏰]

Here are some places I use as part of a highly redundant Bitcoin backup strategy.

1) 3.5in floppy disks
2) 5.25in floppy disks
3) The hard drives of multiple computers from the most recent to some very old computers including a 30 year old 286, and an old Pentium 1 computer running Windows 3.1. The latter is the only computer running a version of Microsoft Windows that I use for anything related to Bitcoin.
4) Removable USB 3 hard drives
5) 1) + 4) stored in a bank safety deposit box
6) Encrypt the file and store it on multiple email and cloud services in different jurisdictions worldwide.

The idea is to be able to recover the Bticoins under many different scenarious from the mundane hard drive failure to a disaster affecting one's local community or country where not only is one's home wiped out but also one's bank safety deposit box etc.

2) is one of my favorites and is particularly suitable for storing unencrypted private keys. The idea is that if the floppy is stolen one has time to empty the wallet while an attacker is still figuring out how to read the 5.25in floppy disk. To further slow down an attacker  one can hide the floppy containing the Bitcoin keys among many old 5.25in floppy disks forcing an attacker to have to read multiple old floppy disks in order to find the golden needle in the obsolete digital haystack.

I think it's probably a good idea to encrypt everything.

[QuestionAuthority]

Here are some places I use as part of a highly redundant Bitcoin backup strategy.

1) 3.5in floppy disks
2) 5.25in floppy disks
3) The hard drives of multiple computers from the most recent to some very old computers including a 30 year old 286, and an old Pentium 1 computer running Windows 3.1. The latter is the only computer running a version of Microsoft Windows that I use for anything related to Bitcoin.
4) Removable USB 3 hard drives
5) 1) + 4) stored in a bank safety deposit box
6) Encrypt the file and store it on multiple email and cloud services in different jurisdictions worldwide.

The idea is to be able to recover the Bticoins under many different scenarious from the mundane hard drive failure to a disaster affecting one's local community or country where not only is one's home wiped out but also one's bank safety deposit box etc.

2) is one of my favorites and is particularly suitable for storing unencrypted private keys. The idea is that if the floppy is stolen one has time to empty the wallet while an attacker is still figuring out how to read the 5.25in floppy disk. To further slow down an attacker  one can hide the floppy containing the Bitcoin keys among many old 5.25in floppy disks forcing an attacker to have to read multiple old floppy disks in order to find the golden needle in the obsolete digital haystack.

Now I know your age because of the 5.25in floppy disks and the old 286. You're somewhere between 50 and 200 years old. 

[ArticMine]

I think it's probably a good idea to encrypt everything.

This is for the most part very true but there is one senario where it is not namely estate planning.  The idea is to make your Bitcoins available to the executor of your estate after one death but not make them avalible to anyone while one is still alive. I have given this some thought to this and came with the following concept. Store the decyption keys on one or more 5.25in floppy disk(s) and place the floppy disks in one or more bank safety deposit boxes. Advise one's executor and family members where the floppies are stored.

Now after ones death the bank safety deposit box(s) are opened and the executor of the estate gets access to the floppy disks.  A yes it will take some effort and time for the executor put together the hardware and software in order to read the old 5.25in floppy disks quite likely a few weeks; however in this senario this is not a real problem since it can take months to probate an estate in any case.

One the other hand if the bank safety deposit box is compromised while one is still alive, then the obsolete 5.25in floppy disks will slow down an attacker long enough to allow the owner of the Bitcoins to empty the wallet before the attacker can read the old floppy disks even though the attacker has the floppy in their possession.  

[ArticMine]

Now I know your age because of the 5.25in floppy disks and the old 286. You're somewhere between 50 and 200 years old.  

Living to age 200 would be kind of cool however that means having to store Bitcoin keys in a replica of the steam powered analytical engine. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analytical_engine. Of course with an ample supply of super heated steam one can scald an attacker who tries to steal the Bitcoins.

[calian]

This is ridiculous and probably a bad idea (think bit-rot) but I've thought that storing BTC on a cassette tape like the old TRS-80 computers could use would be really slick.

http://oldcomputers.net/pics/trs80-i.jpg

[calian]

Another sketchy but interesting method would be to use the number of grains of sand in an hourglass as your private key. Include some instructions - say number of grains = n, hash (n + 5), n - 7 times with SHA-256.

[ArticMine]

This is ridiculous and probably a bad idea (think bit-rot) but I've thought that storing BTC on a cassette tape like the old TRS-80 computers could use would be really slick.

http://oldcomputers.net/pics/trs80-i.jpg

This is even more generations back. The question is how to get the data onto the cassette tape.  Find a computer that can read both 5.25in floppies and cassete tape?.  Serial port connection? An old dailup modem? A 286 can read 3.5in floppy disks and so can the most modern computers via a USB floppy drive.  As for 5.25in floppies many computers under 10 years old support the drives.

Bitrot is a concern with any technology both old and new. Actually CDs are among the worst for this. The answer is an active approach of renewing and testing the backups on a regular basis and do not just rely on one kind of technology. Multiple technologies from different times is best.

[QuestionAuthority]

I think it's probably a good idea to encrypt everything.

This is for the most part very true but there is one senario where it is not namely estate planning.  The idea is to make your Bitcoins available to the executor of your estate after one death but not make them avalible to anyone while one is still alive. I have given this some thought to this and came with the following concept. Store the decyption keys on one or more 5.25in floppy disk(s) and place the floppy disks in one or more bank safety deposit boxes. Advise one's executor and family members where the floppies are stored.

Now after ones death the bank safety deposit box(s) are opened and the executor of the estate gets access to the floppy disks.  A yes it will take some effort and time for the executor put together the hardware and software in order to read the old 5.25in floppy disks quite likely a few weeks; however in this senario this is not a real problem since it can take months to probate an estate in any case.

One the other hand if the bank safety deposit box is compromised while one is still alive, then the obsolete 5.25in floppy disks will slow down an attacker long enough to allow the owner of the Bitcoins to empty the wallet before the attacker can read the old floppy disks even though the attacker has the floppy in their possession.  

I think that's a really good idea and in a way exactly what I used to do before I started using a paper wallet. I had a 4gb Hitachi Microdrive CF that I used in my HP hx4700 pda. The Microdrive was perfect for the pda but will not fit in a standard CF reader because its too wide. I used cheap IDE-CF adapter plugged into the motherboard to load the wallet and stored the Microdrive offsite. My thinking was even if they stole the Microdrive they would have to figure out something to read it with and the only thing it fits in are out of date pda's and cameras which won't read the wallet. That would give me time to discover it missing and transfer funds.

[jubalix]

Brain wallet plus encrypted backup on multiple online services.
Needs no trust, is resistant to fire and doesn't have a singular point of failure.

Well, the singular point of failure is you being unable to reproduce your password (due to forgetting it, or dying, or some accident causing brain trauma, etc).

I personally used some kinda time lock construction for this scenario - if I show no sign of life for 3+ months, the password for my truecrypt container will be emailed to my family. Or well, part of it, including an explanation how to get the rest that only they will understand.

what service do you use?

also would that service if online have access to passwords then?

[Phinnaeus Gage]

Currently, I'm using InstaWallet to store my Bitcoin wealth. If by chance my coins are returned, I converting them to gold via Coinabul. Once I get my gold, I'm trading it to Dank for weed. Then I'm going to sell the weed to... I haven't thought that part out yet, but I'm sure it'll be profitable.

[ammo88]

Where do you store most of your coins for long term storage?

Just trying to get a feeling of where most users store there coins.

I have some at Bitcoin Fog. I have no gains in letting my BTC being traced so the BTC I wanna store for an extended period I just add to Bitcoin Fog.

The rest of my BTC I have in blockchain.info and Bitcoin-Qt wallets for spending and gambling

[BTC Books]

Armory at the moment - off-line.  I have no plans to open that wallet until such time as one of the hardware wallets is successfully implemented.

Once there's a selection of hardware wallets from which to choose, the plan is to have three:  home, car and safety deposit box.

The main thing I'm waiting on for the hardware wallets is the ability to hold the same wallet on multiple devices that can be updated easily.  I'm unsure that the technology is quite there, yet.

[Dabs]

Engraved on a tungsten block, dipped in hot wax, using a plastic container that is encased in cement.

[Knecke]

Engraved on a tungsten block, dipped in hot wax, using a plastic container that is encased in cement.

Really? Great idea if the sun becomes a supernova the tungston doesnt melt

[ThatDGuy]

JPEG photos of a paper wallet, hidden amongst family and pet photo album archives. Even if you were staring the photo it wouldn't be immediately obvious there was a private key on it. I guess this could be regarded as steganography in its most basic form.

This is a really cool idea for a backup!