Is Lightning Network safe?

[johnwhitestar]

I was considering to begin using LN on Electrum, but found some article online that are warning against it.

Have been the mentioned risks already mitigated, or it would be more save to avoid using LN for the moment?

[johnwhitestar]

It's a bit different idea than the trustlessness of BTC, then.

[dkbit98]

I think question should be Is Lightning Network safe? (not save)
I don't think all other alternatives mentioned in that article are much safer.
Try to move them now with current idiotic fees for eth.

[pooya87]

It's a bit different idea than the trustlessness of BTC, then.

not really.
the problem is that Lightning Network is just new and it is being improved while they find its issues and fix them. additionally the implementation of LN protocol here in Electrum is new (v4 is the first release of it) so it is possible to have some bugs in it.
that is why you should use it with smaller amounts and also use it with people whom you trust more for now.

[johnwhitestar]

I think question should be Is Lightning Network safe? (not save)

Oh, my God! I've made such a ridiculous error, thank you! I've edited it.

I don't think all other alternatives mentioned in that article are much safer.

I wasn't considering other hypothesis mentioned in the article, as I've cited a casual article among many I found.

[...]you should use it with smaller amounts and also use it with people whom you trust more for now.

That's a good point. The issue is there for the moment but probably it will be solved at some point.

I was asking in a practical sense, and of course about using it with whatever people, not only with those I trust as using money only with the people you just trust is quite a big limit.
For instance the exchange owners can be honest people for years and then just make an exit scam.

Why this technology is being promoted if it's not that secure at the moment? If people begin using it without being aware about the risks a big exit scam may greatly harm the image of BTC.  

[pooya87]

Why this technology is being promoted if it's not that secure at the moment? If people begin using it without being aware about the risks a big exit scam may greatly harm the image of BTC. 

because if people don't use it and don't report back the issues or simply their feedback the project can not grow. it is the same as bitcoin. on day one bitcoin was also not secure to transact millions of dollars in and in fact it did have bugs that were fixed over time as people used it more and the bugs were found.
with that said, things aren't that bad with LN. it is not like it is filled with bugs and exploits!

[BitMaxz]

Since the lightning network is new there is no guaranteed answer if the lightning network is safe and it still developing and I believe in the future it may become more secure than what it was before.

Look at their progress here https://github.com/lightningnetwork
As you can see they have big progress on LND so developers including Joseph Poon and Olaoluwa Osuntokun still focus on developing LN. So it still not final and it can have some bugs in the future that we still didn't know.

If you don't feel safe using it why not stay using the mainnet instead. Lightning network is not yet widely used so only few people using it.

Why do you actually want to use LN?

[LoyceMobile]

I suggest to just try LN with small amounts, know that you can lose it but use it anyway because of it's potential.

I haven't used Electrum yet with LN.

[johnwhitestar]

Why do you actually want to use LN?

Because BTC transaction fees are quite high.

I suggest to just try LN with small amounts, know that you can lose it but use it anyway because of it's potential.

If it's true that 85% of users can be attacked with a minimum expense for attacker (as the research mentioned in the article states), I wouldn't consider to risk even the smallest amount.  

It doesn't make sense "risking" a small amount either as you'll need to pay the standard BTC fees when you'll be closing the channel, am I getting it wrong?

[bob123]

It doesn't make sense "risking" a small amount either as you'll need to pay the standard BTC fees when you'll be closing the channel, am I getting it wrong?

No, you are right in terms of that an on-chain transaction is required for both opening and closing a channel.
If you don't feel confident risking a few satoshis to play around with the LN, feel free to not do so until it is out of alpha.

[BitMaxz]

Because BTC transaction fees are quite high.

If the fee is your problem, there are some other options that I think many of us use it like Coinbase.

This is the best option and the transaction fee is free if you send it Coinbase to Coinbase account or via email. Since more people use Coinbase, this is the right option for now than using LN.

[johnwhitestar]

Because BTC transaction fees are quite high.

If the fee is your problem, there are some other options that I think many of us use it like Coinbase.

This is the best option and the transaction fee is free if you send it Coinbase to Coinbase account or via email. Since more people use Coinbase, this is the right option for now than using LN.

Thank you very much for your suggestion. How Coinbase works? You need to trust them as well?

I was looking to reduce transaction fees from an exchange, which apparently doesn't have Coinbase withdrawal option.

[pooya87]

Thank you very much for your suggestion. How Coinbase works? You need to trust them as well?

Coinbase is a custodial wallet and a centralized exchange. which basically means you have no control over your private keys or your money and you'll have to go through the verification process and lose your privacy too. Coinbase controls both the keys and your money and all you'll have is an account which you can send and receive bitcoin from.

trust them?
well Coinbase is not a scam company if that's what you are asking but they could get hacked like many other exchanges and you lose your money, or some day they could decide that you are doing something "bad" with your account and block it and never give back your money.
they are also record and report all your actions including transactions you send/receive, your IP addresses,... to the government agencies.

[johnwhitestar]

Thank you very much for your suggestion. How Coinbase works? You need to trust them as well?

Coinbase is a custodial wallet and a centralized exchange. which basically means you have no control over your private keys or your money and you'll have to go through the verification process and lose your privacy too. Coinbase controls both the keys and your money and all you'll have is an account which you can send and receive bitcoin from.

trust them?
well Coinbase is not a scam company if that's what you are asking but they could get hacked like many other exchanges and you lose your money, or some day they could decide that you are doing something "bad" with your account and block it and never give back your money.
they are also record and report all your actions including transactions you send/receive, your IP addresses,... to the government agencies.

Great alternative to BTC then , and even to LN