I'm about to test Monero so should I use gui wallet or light wallet

[arabspaceship123]

https://www.getmonero.org/downloads/

I'm planning to test Monero so I'm asking advice which's the best wallet. I can't decide from GUI Wallet or Feather Wallet.

I don't know if privacy's secured in light wallets or if it's better downloading 66% pruned blockchain for GUI wallet. If light wallets are secure I don't want to use my SSD for another blockchain test.

How's XMR a privacy coin? If it's exchanged to XMR from BTC can it be analysed from where it's traded? What's happening in process of exchanging BTC>XMR does it decrease privacy if it's swapped with Binance or instant exchange

With your help I'll write reviews like my other threads Fun & learning with Electrum EPS, Electrum wallet & Bitcoin Core QT in Win 11

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If we compare with Bitcoin, GUI wallet is like Bitcoin Core while feather wallet is like Electrum or Blue wallet, obviously if you want to achieve better privacy the choice is GUI wallet.

It's not entirely about XMR to BTC or BTC to XMR, it also depend on the way you get those coin before.

Binance is centralized, worst for privacy.
Instant exchange is quite private, but still able to record your IP address.

You can use Bisq or other exchange that allow you to connect via Tor.

[OmegaStarScream]

I usually see people recommending Cake wallet. It's open source, lightweight and you can use it to connect to your own node (which is obviously better in terms of privacy regardless of the coin).

Some people might be able to give you a better answer on what makes Monero a "good privacy coin" but overall, it's not possible to see the addresses balances, as well as the amounts and addresses of a transaction.

Using a centralized exchange would obviously reduce your anonymity because they could keep certain data of your transactions when processing it (time, amount, the address you withdrew funds to, the bitcoin addresses you deposited from, etc.)

Here are some good articles you may want to look at [1][2]

[1] https://www.getmonero.org/resources/user-guides/prove-payment.html
[2] https://www.investopedia.com/tech/introduction-monero-xmr/

[Charles-Tim]

Binance is centralized, worst for privacy.
Instant exchange is quite private, but still able to record your IP address.

There are instant exchanges that you will be able to connect using VPN or Tor. But they are not 100% private because they can force their customers to provide KYC documents after freezing the customer's coins. Instant exchanges are completely centralized.

You can use Bisq or other exchange that allow you to connect via Tor.

I too will recommend Bisq which is a decentralized exchange.

[arabspaceship123]

It's not entirely about XMR to BTC or BTC to XMR, it also depend on the way you get those coin before.

Doesn't XMR help make it impossible to search blockchains to get to your Bitcoin before the swap?

You can use Bisq or other exchange that allow you to connect via Tor.

After Monero Wallet I'm planning to test & review Bisq

I usually see people recommending Cake wallet. It's open source, lightweight and you can use it to connect to your own node (which is obviously better in terms of privacy regardless of the coin).

Cake wallet doesn't have Windows version. I'll use Feather wallet or GUI.

Some people might be able to give you a better answer on what makes Monero a "good privacy coin" but overall, it's not possible to see the addresses balances, as well as the amounts and addresses of a transaction.

If that's how Monero's working to give privacy it's a welcome for users who'll prefer privacy as priority. It's up to users to take other precautions.

Using a centralized exchange would obviously reduce your anonymity because they could keep certain data of your transactions when processing it (time, amount, the address you withdrew funds to, the bitcoin addresses you deposited from, etc.)

So for increasing privacy you're best avoid centralised exchange because it's leaving data behind. Instant exchanges with VPN's better for anonymity.

Here are some good articles you may want to look at [1][2]

[1] https://www.getmonero.org/resources/user-guides/prove-payment.html
[2] https://www.investopedia.com/tech/introduction-monero-xmr/

Thanks I'll look at the articles you've posted.

[Charles-Tim]

Doesn't XMR help make it impossible to search blockchains to get to your Bitcoin before the swap?

What it meant is that if you used a centralized exchange like Binance that have your real identity to purchase monero or bitcoin, it is in the exchange record that you purchase a coin and the amount all on history. That is why he pointed to bisq which is a decentralized exchange that support Tor.

[DeathAngel]

There are a few options worth considering. The most popular choice is the Monero GUI Wallet which provides a user friendly interface & allows you to manage your Monero funds securely.

Another obvious option is the Ledger Nano S a hardware wallet that offers excellent security and offline storage for your Monero.

Some people use the Cake Wallet for iOS and Android which is a mobile wallet that provides convenience and privacy features. In the end though the best wallet for you will depend on your specific needs and preferences.

[jrrsparkles]

How's XMR a privacy coin? If it's exchanged to XMR from BTC can it be analysed from where it's traded? What's happening in process of exchanging BTC>XMR does it decrease privacy if it's swapped with Binance or instant exchange

With your help I'll write reviews like my other threads Fun & learning with Electrum EPS, Electrum wallet & Bitcoin Core QT in Win 11

If you are thinking about privacy while using an exchange like Binance where KYC is mandatory or instant exchange where also KYC become a thing then there is no privacy at all.

You can think about using any decentralized exchange if they have BTC/XMR pair or find a way trade with someone in person.


About the wallet recommendation then you no need Monero GUI to test monero simply a light wallet is enough and as mentioned Feather wallet : https://featherwallet.org/ is a goof choice because its open source and light weight so no need to bother downloading huge amount of data into your SSD.

[arabspaceship123]

Here's a question. I've got BTC in Electrum I send it to instant exchange. I receive XMR in my Feather wallet. Can blockchain analysis companies link my XMR to the BTC. I'd like to know if my XMR's really private or not? Is there any thing else which makes the XMR private if I'll swap them to BTC later.

[vv181]

Here's a question. I've got BTC in Electrum I send it to instant exchange. I receive XMR in my Feather wallet. Can blockchain analysis companies link my XMR to the BTC. I'd like to know if my XMR's really private or not? Is there any thing else which makes the XMR private if I'll swap them to BTC later.

Instant exchanges with VPN's better for anonymity.

If you are dealing with a centralized entity, in this case, instant exchange, there is always a possibility they keep logs. This also applies even if you use a VPN. VPN in its current technicalities incapable of being provable verified of not keeping logs.

With that to say, that particular instant exchange knows that you have exchanged your Bitcoin to Monero (They also log which address you've exchanged to). However, they can not know any further about whether the XMRs are still there or already being moved, they didn't know anything else.

AFAIK, there is a decentralized way to swap BTC to XMR, you should consider and take a look at atomic swap.

[Husires]

Here's a question. I've got BTC in Electrum I send it to instant exchange. I receive XMR in my Feather wallet. Can blockchain analysis companies link my XMR to the BTC. I'd like to know if my XMR's really private or not? Is there any thing else which makes the XMR private if I'll swap them to BTC later.

The weak point of the exchanges is that they record your Bitcoin addresses, and in return they know that you have withdrawn Monero. If you use the same account in the future to convert Monero into Bitcoin, they will know that. If you want to enhance your privacy, manage bisq with Tor and convert Bitcoin to Monero and vice versa.
Monerujo is a good wallet if you want to use your phone.

[arabspaceship123]

However, they can not know any further about whether the XMRs are still there or already being moved, they didn't know anything else.

After swapping they've been sent to Feather wallet is it impossible to trace the BTC they've been swapped from? That's important to understand because it'll explain if Monero's privacy really works.

The weak point of the exchanges is that they record your Bitcoin addresses, and in return they know that you have withdrawn Monero.

Does instant exchanges recording swap infos stop at conversion. They'll know it's XMR to the address but after it can they follow it?

[Husires]

After swapping they've been sent to Feather wallet is it impossible to trace the BTC they've been swapped from? That's important to understand because it'll explain if Monero's privacy really works.

They cannot do that. Monero has various methods to enhance privacy, such as Ring signatures.

Does instant exchanges recording swap infos stop at conversion. They'll know it's XMR to the address but after it can they follow it?

No, they cannot, but they will record the deposit address and the amount that was transferred to Monero. If after a while you send the same amount to Instant Exchange to exchange it to Bitcoin again, they will start to look like this address could be affiliated with yours, so try to make the sending amount, for example, $100, not abnormal numbers. Such as 67 or 82 and so on.

[vv181]

However, they can not know any further about whether the XMRs are still there or already being moved, they didn't know anything else.

After swapping they've been sent to Feather wallet is it impossible to trace the BTC they've been swapped from? That's important to understand because it'll explain if Monero's privacy really works.

Monero is fundamentally private. It has the property of untraceability and unlinkability. Keep in mind it also utilizes a stealth address. All of them enable Monero's fungibility.

Here is the thing, those properties are the reason why I said they won't know anything else after you receive the XMR into your own wallet. That means the Monero itself is inherently private. Now since what you asked is the BTC, of course, the centralized swap services that you used, are very likely to keep and store logs for the BTC UTXO that are linked to any identity that they could derive from the swap processes.

[arabspaceship123]

After swapping they've been sent to Feather wallet is it impossible to trace the BTC they've been swapped from? That's important to understand because it'll explain if Monero's privacy really works.

They cannot do that. Monero has various methods to enhance privacy, such as Ring signatures.

What you're saying means after you've received XMR it's impossible for blockchain analysis companies to follow it. How's the Feather wallet helping to keep XMR private?

Does instant exchanges recording swap infos stop at conversion. They'll know it's XMR to the address but after it can they follow it?

No, they cannot, but they will record the deposit address and the amount that was transferred to Monero. If after a while you send the same amount to Instant Exchange to exchange it to Bitcoin again, they will start to look like this address could be affiliated with yours, so try to make the sending amount, for example, $100, not abnormal numbers. Such as 67 or 82 and so on.

Going back to the same instant exchange's going to be detrimental for maintaining privacy. You don't want privacy diminished if you're using Monero.

[vv181]

They cannot do that. Monero has various methods to enhance privacy, such as Ring signatures.

What you're saying means after you've received XMR it's impossible for blockchain analysis companies to follow it. How's the Feather wallet helping to keep XMR private?

Ring Signatures work to ensure the output of the transaction is untraceable. The history of that particular coin is unknown, what happens after is also applied by this feature. So if you make a transaction, an outside observer would never know if you truly sent it or not.

In regard to Feather Wallet, as explained on https://www.getmonero.org/downloads/#mobilelight, it connects to remote nodes. That part is the crucial one. If you wish to maintain privacy, make sure when you use the wallet, you are doing it over a secure and private network. All is good since the wallet is not a Remote synchronization (lightweight) type that requires you to share some keys.