Weird Bitcoin address (1111111111111111111114oLvT2)

[Bitcoin_Arena]

I bumped on a weird Bitcoin address today and when I checked it through Blockchair explorer (https://blockchair.com/bitcoin/address/1111111111111111111114oLvT2), I couldn't help but wonder what's going on. The address started receiving transactions from 2010 and It's still receiving them to this date. No out going transactions ever. The total number of BTC it has received so far is 197 Bitcoins. Almost every hour, People still keep sending the address BTC and it's not just dust amounts. We are talking about 0.004 - 0.006 BTC

So my questions are;
1. Is this Bitcoin address valid and do you think it has a private key?
2. How does one create such a bitcoin address if it's possible?
3. Why are people still sending Bitcoins to it, almost every hour? Is there any purpose of those incoming transactions?

[BlackHatCoiner]

1. Is this Bitcoin address valid and do you think it has a private key?

I don't know if you ever heard of “burning addresses”. The one you posted contains the same character for 21 times on a row. It's pretty obvious that anyone who could generate such address, could also generate any other possible result. Hence, that's a proof that no one actually owns the private key.

2. How does one create such a bitcoin address if it's possible?

Simply take a random 160-bit string represented hexadecimally and perform some functions to it. The above address decoded looks like that:

Code:

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000094A00911

You can create one here: https://gobittest.appspot.com/Address
Just add any random hex value to step 3. You won't be able to know its private key, because it's, essentially, a one-way function. There's no reversal.

You can create these addresses here too: https://gobittest.appspot.com/ProofOfBurn

3. Why are people still sending Bitcoins to it, almost every hour? Is there any purpose of those incoming transactions?

Proof of Burn.

[hosseinimr93]

As stated by BlackHatCoiner, that's a burn address.
The address has a correct checksum and is valid, but no one has its private key.

Below are two other burn addresses.  (There should be many other burn addresses as well.)

1CounterpartyXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXUWLpVr (2130 BTC)
1ChancecoinXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXZELUFD (480 BTC)

[o_e_l_e_o]

An address is simply the Base58 encoding of a public key hash with a network byte at the start and a checksum at the end. You can therefore create any address you like, provided it starts with a valid network byte, is of the correct length, ends with the correct checksum, and only includes Base58 characters (so no 0 (zero), I (uppercase i), O (uppercase o), or l (lowercase L)). You will not be able to turn that address back in to a public key or a private key though, so the bitcoin on it will be unspendable unless in the incredibly unlikely scenario that someone stumbles across the private key.

[Twentyonepaylots]

Could be a burn address that is easily made by the user/owner of the address itself, which will explain well why the characters are a bit odd than the usual almost random jumble of letters and numbers that we came to know with. Still, I believe that this should have a private address and will of course be inaccessible to anyone besides the owner or the ones that the owner entrusted the wallet/address with, courtesy of the private key.

[Timelord2067]

That's always a trip down memory lane whenever I see that wallet address.  Like you I was gob-smacked when I first saw it and I still wonder why people are both obsessed with burning funds to that wallet address and also those who have made it their mission to crack the PrivKey and unlock the riches locked away.

[Lucius]

Below are two other burn addresses.  (There should be many other burn addresses as well.)
1CounterpartyXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXUWLpVr (2130 BTC)
1ChancecoinXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXZELUFD (480 BTC)

I really wonder why people send BTC to addresses like this - because they hate BTC and think it will hurt it (actually do the opposite) - or think it's a cool thing to be part of the burn process? I think anyone can do whatever they want with their property, but this is just plain stupid - some have obviously not heard of charitable donations...

[BlackHatCoiner]

Still, I believe that this should have a private address

To create an address you hash a 256-bit hex value with RIPEMD-160 which returns a 160-bit hex value. This means that on average, every address has around ~2²⁵⁶ / 2¹⁶⁰ = ~2⁹⁶ different private keys. That's an insanely big number. You'll realize it once I convert it decimally:

~79,228,162,514,264,337,593,543,950,336.

Yes, these are the averagely total private keys for that address. 

besides the owner or the ones that the owner entrusted the wallet/address with, courtesy of the private key.

No one owns it. No one.

Like you I was gob-smacked when I first saw it and I still wonder why people are both obsessed with burning funds to that wallet address and also those who have made it their mission to crack the PrivKey and unlock the riches locked away.

Cracking the private key of that address would mean that they could theoretically crack any other address.

I really wonder why people send BTC to addresses like this - because they hate BTC and think it will hurt it (actually do the opposite) - or think it's a cool thing to be part of the burn process?

The proof of burn coins work as they their proof says. You'll have to burn from Bitcoin block chain to get from X block chain.

[o_e_l_e_o]

I really wonder why people send BTC to addresses like this

Both of these addresses were set up by altcoins to distribute their coins in a fair manner. Anyone who burned bitcoins by sending them to one of these address received some of the altcoin in exchange.

You can see the page on the Counterparty website where they explain their distribution model here: https://counterparty.io/news/why-proof-of-burn/
Chancecoin no longer exists, but again you can see their distribution model and link to the burn address here: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=528023.0

[kryptqnick]

Below are two other burn addresses.  (There should be many other burn addresses as well.)
1CounterpartyXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXUWLpVr (2130 BTC)
1ChancecoinXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXZELUFD (480 BTC)

I really wonder why people send BTC to addresses like this - because they hate BTC and think it will hurt it (actually do the opposite) - or think it's a cool thing to be part of the burn process? I think anyone can do whatever they want with their property, but this is just plain stupid - some have obviously not heard of charitable donations...

I wanted to ask the same thing because I really don't understand why people would burn their BTC. If they don't need the money, there are places to send it to where it will be appreciated. If it's about the supply, Bitcoin is already scarce enough to get rid of coins like that.

As for Proof of Burn, it sounds like a weird concept, and I'm not sure how I feel about this as an alternative to proof of work, but who in their right mind would burn BTC to get a reward in some altcoin? I really don't understand these people.

[o_e_l_e_o]

but who in their right mind would burn BTC to get a reward in some altcoin? I really don't understand these people.

People pay fiat for miners and electricity for get bitcoin. Some people literally burn coal to earn bitcoin. Is burning bitcoin to earn an altcoin really so different? It's certainly preferable to a lot of altcoins which directly sell their pre-mined made up nonsense to users - at least with proof of burn the owners aren't making themselves rich from idiots who don't understand they are being scammed by a shitcoin.

I also don't understand why you would sell, burn, or otherwise give away your bitcoin for >99.9% of altcoins, but if people want to burn their bitcoin and make mine more scarce and therefore more valuable in the process, then who I am to argue.

[so98nn]

Below are two other burn addresses.  (There should be many other burn addresses as well.)
1CounterpartyXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXUWLpVr (2130 BTC)
1ChancecoinXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXZELUFD (480 BTC)

I really wonder why people send BTC to addresses like this - because they hate BTC and think it will hurt it (actually do the opposite) - or think it's a cool thing to be part of the burn process? I think anyone can do whatever they want with their property, but this is just plain stupid - some have obviously not heard of charitable donations...

Now that arises one more question - What if big mining farm decide to burn jumbo amount of the bitcoin so that they can increase the prices based on demand and supply formula?
One thing is clear, burn is done to control the inflation in the market by reducing the supply.

It is also mentioned that Proof of Burn is allowed to the miners. Just imagine dropping the supply by 30-40%! Would be crazy one.

[Lucius]

BlackHatCoiner&o_e_l_e_o, thanks for explaining, I really didn't know the thing worked that way - burn x BTC to get x altcoin, but now it's definitely clear to me why people send BTC to addresses like this - I should have known that no one gives up their coins just like that.

[BlackHatCoiner]

As for Proof of Burn, it sounds like a weird concept, and I'm not sure how I feel about this as an alternative to proof of work

Proof of burn isn't an alternative to proof of work. Without the Bitcoin's block chain you couldn't prove your burning for the x coin and hence, indirectly, PoW (or PoS) is required for PoB to work. Generally PoB is a stupid concept and I'd discourage anyone from buying PoB tokens, but as o_e_l_e_o wrote, it makes bitcoins more valuable, so I'll encourage you from proving your burning.  

Now that arises one more question - What if big mining farm decide to burn jumbo amount of the bitcoin so that they can increase the prices based on demand and supply formula?

I don't know. Would you throw some tones of gold to the bottom of the ocean *just* to make gold be more valuable?

[iTradeChips]

Whoah, I would say that this is one process I am totally alien with. I tried to understand the thread by reading the posts before this but I really cannot. Maybe that is because I am not into programming or should I say I am not a programmer to know the languages and the computer this and thats. But it is interesting to see that people actually burn Bitcoins to get other coins. And even I have read the explanations here, I still cannot figure why. Maybe I need to reread the posts more.

[zasad@]

1BitcoinEaterAddressDontSendf59kuE
https://www.blockchain.com/btc/address/1BitcoinEaterAddressDontSendf59kuE

11111111111111111111BZbvjr
https://www.blockchain.com/btc/address/11111111111111111111BZbvjr
These are also addresses for burning bitcoins. Finding private keys can take a huge amount of electricity than the sun can generate