Can you trace a person if he received coins on a Blockchain mobile wallet?

[gondel]

Hi,
Is it possible to trace someone if he used a BTC address which was generated from his Blockchain wallet on his phone.
Lets say I am sending 1 BTC to an address provided from a Blockchain mobile wallet ( the person clicked on receive and the address was generated). While he generated the address on his phoen and received the coins he was using a wifi network.
Beside the record that is visible on the explorer which shows that adress received such coins in and out, is there a way to trace it to the person who used the wallet on his phone?
Thanks!

[OmegaStarScream]

Regardless of the wallet that has been used, tracing bitcoins cannot be made using an explorer or a simple software, there is no tutorial or guide for that. Some articles you may want to read [1][2][3]. If there is something regarding illegal activities, then maybe reporting it to law enforcement would be more helpful.

[1] https://www.technologyreview.com/s/608763/criminals-thought-bitcoin-was-the-perfect-hiding-place-they-thought-wrong/
[2] https://www.quora.com/Is-Bitcoin-traceable-Is-it-possible-to-identify-which-exchange-am-I-using
[3] https://bitcoinist.com/yes-your-bitcoin-transactions-can-be-tracked-and-here-are-the-companies-that-are-doing-it/

[AdolfinWolf]

Unless it is a government agency tracking it, it's not going to be possible.

Although blockchain.info's wallets are stored locally, they could still save KYC data, which could be a strong link (If it was used here), but i'm not sure you can get that without a lawsuit.

If there is no identifying link there, the coins will be traced back to OP actually, and not the receiver of them, (ofc only if OP used some sort of exchange and no chain-breakers(mixers)).

is there a way to trace it to the person who used the wallet on his phone?

Not until he moves them to a regulated exchange, or somehow phishes himself, no.  (And you'd need a strong suit to get KYC info from any exchange.)

[r1a2y3m4]

Not until he moves them to a regulated exchange, or somehow phishes himself, no.  (And you'd need a strong suit to get KYC info from any exchange.)

Is there any way possible for a person to get somebody's KYC info from any of these exchange? I mean, would the exchange let that? That's not their info and they should protect and respect those people who submitted their personal info to their exchange.

[AdolfinWolf]

Not until he moves them to a regulated exchange, or somehow phishes himself, no.  (And you'd need a strong suit to get KYC info from any exchange.)

Is there any way possible for a person to get somebody's KYC info from any of these exchange? I mean, would the exchange let that? That's not their info and they should protect and respect those people who submitted their personal info to their exchange.

If there is an investigation going on, i'm pretty sure they're forced to hand over that info to the authorities, and thus the plaintiff, so yes.. It's definitely possible, albeit through law enforcement/the proper channels.

[vit05]

That would not be easy to do. I do not believe there is any link between the IP used by a person to create a Wallet and the Bitcoin address that he used to receive resources. Much more information would have to be used. And it would be so time-consuming and so many steps and authorizations that it would be easier to investigate using another method.

[gondel]

Lets say the case scenario is that I did not provide any KYC. Any chance then?

[nc50lc]

Lets say the case scenario is that I did not provide any KYC. Any chance then?

Then it will be harder to identify that the coins belong to you.
Even with Chain analysis, it may determine the last destination address but it won't be tagged as yours (as a Person).

What is this specific "Blockchain wallet" that you've mentioned, Blockchain.com?
If it is somewhat an online centralized wallet like the one I mentioned, there's still a chance that they could get your info based from your IP address and when that IP was used to sites with personal information, investigators may find a lead on finding your identity.

It's best to use a "real" Bitcoin wallet with full coin control for pseudo-anonymity reasons.
Also, consider using a tumbler service or wallet with coinjoin function to break the trace in case your coins came from a questionable source.

[AdolfinWolf]

Lets say the case scenario is that I did not provide any KYC. Any chance then?

I'm pretty sure blockchain.com also logs IP adresses, and there's a good chance they associate/save them with particular wallets as well.

So there's another vector someone can make use of, if he can get the powers to be to move in on it..

See https://www.blockchain.com/legal/privacy

Information we collect about you: With regard to each of your visits to our website or our app we automatically collect the following information:

Login Information: We log technical information about your use of the Services, including the type of browser and version you use, last access time of your wallet, the Internet Protocol (IP) address used to create the wallet and the most recent IP address used to access the wallet.
Device Information: We collect information about the device you use to access your account, including the hardware model, operating system and version, and unique device identifiers, but this information is anonymized and not tied to any particular person.
Wallet Information: If you create a Blockchain wallet through our Services, you may choose to generate a public and private key pair. When you log out of the wallet, we collect an encrypted file, that, if unencrypted, would contain these keys, along with your transaction history. When you enable notifications through your Account Settings, we will collect the unencrypted public key in order to provide such notifications. Under no circumstances do we ever collect an unencrypted private key from you, nor can we decrypt any wallet file data.
Transaction Information: In connection with our Conversion Service, as such term is defined in our User Agreement, we may collect and maintain information relating to transactions you effect in your Wallet that convert one Virtual Currency to another (e.g. Bitcoin for Ether).

2. Use of Personal Data
As it is in our legitimate interest to be responsive to you and to ensure the proper functioning of our products and organization, we will use your information to:

Understand and meet your needs and preferences in using our Services;
Develop new and enhance existing service and product offerings;
Manage and develop our business and operations;
Carry out any actions for which we have received your consent;
Prevent fraudulent or other criminal activity; and
Meet legal and regulatory requirements.

If you can prove to certain instances that the account was used for money laundering, i'm pretty sure blockchain.com will cooperate in giving HWID's/IP adresses.

[Harlot]

If you are talking about pinpointing the user's exact location or something I doubt it won't be possible if you aren't tracking them like what the authority's do. Sometimes one transaction isn't enough to know their exact location that is why it is being constantly monitored by the authorities on where he uses it and do background checks to the other end, this is where the user is get caught. If you are talking about hypotheticals here you shouldn't be worried about it that much if you aren't doing illegal or shady stuff with your Bitcoin.

[RodeoX]

Just subpoena the wallet host. Now I have every bit of information about the TX.

Long story short. With a mobile wallet you don't even own any bitcoin because you must completely trust the wallet. You are just controlling a balance attributed to you. But it is really up to the owner, the wallet host.

[bitmover]

In theory it's not easy to trace. But the guy may have done a mistake, or he may do a mistake.

For example, he may send the coins to am exchange where he made kyc.

Or he may make a transaction using the address provided to you and some previous address woth some balance, which may be traced back to him (through some exchange with kyc or something like that)

Take a look at that address with the balance, and hope he doesn't send the coins to some mixer, which would make it untraceable

[Adriano2010]

Let say you are a programmer expert and somehow you get his IP after you send bitcoin to him and after he send bitcoin out, let say he use a SIM card and a mobile data connection, ussually the mobile IP given on some countries are not from same town and sometimes same IP is allocated to 2 or more mobile devices, and even if you find the IP and the user use a prepaid SIM how can you find his name?