Topic: Bitcoin Vs Cash which is more secure (Read 523 times)

Offline cash transactions are secure when they occur in a very close distance; meanwhile, when they occur in a far distance, there is risk involved, which can be reviewed and solved; but even so, this does not make it anonymous because both transactions can be tracked; therefore, it is not secure. Bitcoin transactions conducted outside of exchanges are safer because they are peer-to-peer and involve only the buyer's and seller's wallets, which are highly secure and cannot be tracked.

In what way would you like to know which is secure, bitcoin vs cash?

We can't compare bitcoin or cash because each works separately. If you want security, maybe bitcoin is secure because you don't need too complicated identification when you want to store your funds. To save cash, especially at a bank, you must submit your data to the bank to make transactions using the card.

Although you can shop with cash without using personal data, you can't carry much cash in your wallet because that could invite bad people to want to take your money. This makes people more comfortable using credit or debit cards in their wallets.

Bitcoin and cash have advantages and disadvantages, and I would prefer it if bitcoin and cash could work together to make transactions rather than compare them.

Your thought is correct and logical, but the question is about security, and in terms of security, cash is the most dangerous type of money storage, both in peacetime and during the apocalypse. Because robbery and other illegal activities are still present.

Both cash and cryptocurrencies have pros and cons, and Bitcoin is not a substitute for fiat currency. The primary function of Bitcoin is to store value.
While Bitcoin is vulnerable to theft, so does cash. Cash can be counterfeited, but Bitcoin cannot be counterfeited.
You store cash in your bank card, even if the bank fails, the money in your card still exists.

Under certain circumstances, bitcoin is better used as a means of payment than fiat or cash. However, for certain circumstances, bitcoin is still not a good choice to be used as a means of payment. Imagine how you can use bitcoin as a means of payment in a country where it is not legal as an official currency, and how you can easily pay for something in a traditional market where 99% of transactions are made in cash.

It is true that there are many things that make this currency has advantages and disadvantages, but I would not argue that bitcoin is indeed a better option for secure payment.

These two currencies have their own advantages and disadvantages as you said, but to minimize risk it might be said that bitcoin is a little safer than fiat currency transactions but I believe that in this world there are no transactions that are 100% safe because of course there are loopholes that are indeed not perfect for every transaction that exists, whether it is safe or not, of course, all depends on us in storing financial information and also how we carry out these financial transactions.

Back in the early days of my crypto journey, a lot of people were naive about Bitcoin anonymity and also believe since no KYC is involved in the transaction in the block explorer doesn't matter much until blockchain analysis experts open the eyes of people to the misunderstanding which later lead to the creation of crypto tumbler service.
Having said that, people also need to take caution even when using a wallet like Electrum client traced to the IP address of a certain wallet broadcasting location.
It is good to use a VPN with this wallet.

Bitcoin is definitely more secure in a peaceful, modern society, in which everyone has free access to the internet and is not enslaved by a dictatorship like in North Korea where you are cut off from anything not approved by the government. Although even in such a dictatorship, people would find ways to keep Bitcoin alive and running.

Now, if the scenario were to be more drastic, like for example, WW3 and the collapse of everything and people would not have an internet connection then in such an extremest of cases, cash would be more useful, short term.

But I am planning for the future not for the apocalypse. So Bitcoin all the way.

That's the dilemma of some crypto users, the thought of losing or misplacing their wallet keys.
On the other hand, a lot are still trusting the bank, because if you lost the ATM card or your financial book, you can always report it to the bank.
And then, you only need your verification IDs to replace the card or the book. This is why even some people here can't get rid of their bank accounts.
Also, some of financial transactions still do require bank details, and so most of us continue to use the banking services.
In terms of security, I think, both have their pros and cons. It is up to you how you will handle your accounts to safely secure your assets.

I think cash transactions will also have anonymity. When you trade paper money with the other party, the other party does not know any information about you. But if you pay electronically, the other party may know your information.
However, whether it is Bitcoin or cash, it needs to be properly stored. If you lose your bank card in cash, you can retrieve your bank card through your ID card. But if you lose your Bitcoin key, you can't get your money back.

Before I got to know digital currency ^{[digital fiat]} I tend to think that physical currency is better. Then when I got to know digital fiat, physical money didn't seem the best for cross-border transactions. And once I know crypto, bitcoin is the best. This means that everything has its own time and use. Physical fiat is still needed, while digital fiat is needed too, and bitcoin is a great alternative to get more advantages over physical and digital currencies.

For better use case, bitcoin has gained high confidence to be a currency that can be a great choice for those who like privacy. Bitcoin can be transacted anywhere at their own fee, without central authority and fast. But whatever it is, it's best what you use today because what's best for someone else doesn't necessarily mean it's right for you and your needs.

Each payment method has its advantages and disadvantages. I can't say which one is better or more secure for everyone, but I can say which one is better for myself: bitcoin. At same time, I'm conscious there are many people, especially elder ones, who don't access electronic devices and internet, so cash is a must for them when dealing and trading financially with other people. On their case cash will be the best alternative, without any doubts. Even though it's not safe to hold cash, they don't have another alternative. What they can do to maximize security is to acquire a safe box to store their cash and avoid walking alone with large sums of money on their pockets.

At the end of the day, we are not going to really end up with sending cash to people in envelope or something, that’s really not making any sense at all. Digitally I can send you billions of dollars in a second and only pay like few hundreds at most, whereas even sending few thousands cost more than that, and would be very hard to do to be fair.

I am not saying let’s all start using bitcoin from now on and never have cash, but at the very least the difference is obvious and that’s why I really do not care about this comparison because we need them both, they both could be used in different places and that would make a lot more sense in the long run.

I am not well convinced about your argument and point you brought to the table. If there should be comparison, it should be between bitcoin and fiat.
Fiat on its own is in printed form which I believe you are referring to as cash or in digital form which can be transferred through mobile applications or in the form of CBDC.
Also in the topic title you asked between bitcoin and cash which is more secured, but in your conclusion you rather digressed to which is more anonymous.

Whatever comparison is on the table, the essence of bitcoin is to have a reliable alternative to fiat. Which will offer some kind of liberty to control your money without the interference of third party which could be financial institutions like bank.

Transferring physical fiat (cash) has no trace  unless at the point of disbursement.

the two will never be able to compare which one is greater and which one is worse. both of them have advantages and disadvantages that will complete every transaction. Fiat and Bitcoin become payments that can coexist and complement each other; i. Bitcoin without Fiat will not work because most people still need Fiat whether it's Cash or Digital. and Fiat without Bitcoin will also yield nothing because profitable investment is in Bitcoin or crypto for most investors nowadays. for security issues, it also depends on the user. but Bitcoin is admittedly safer for storage because we have full control, fiat will still be affected by the government. but even so, all have their own risks and benefits.

Fair? I think not because one existed for ages while the other one (bitcoin) only existed for more than 10 years but bitcoin can beat fiat in other features. Bitcoin is digital, decentralized, volatile, and many more. Some of the bitcoin features can be a disadvantage for other users if they don't know how to utilize it properly and they think fiat can win over it.

Comparing them is unavoidable because both of them are money but like you I don't really over think it but I am happy that both of them exist because I can now have options to choose from. If I am dealing with online stuffs, I have bitcoin to use but if I am going outside I have my fiat with me.

I agree with what you said, there is no need to compare them to see which one is better than the other. In case you are looking for an inflation-resistant asset store or an investment that can make profits, then bitcoin is a great option but for daily spending, paying bills, I think fiat is more perfect in this situation. It can be said that they are two completely different things so they cannot be compared on the scale. Fiat will never go away even if it's worse than bitcoin, it's true and we will never stop using it.

Well, given the advantages and disadvantages of each, in my case I have both. Nowadays if you pay for everything with your mobile or card you give away your privacy, but not with cash. This also has exceptions, for example if you buy furniture and you want an invoice, even if you pay in cash the transaction is registered in your name even if you paid in cash.

Bitcoin is better for storing large amounts and transferring them, but you can spend cash wherever you want, while bitcoin is not.

In conclusion, for me nowadays they complement each other.

OK, cash can be taken from you on the street by criminals. But they can also take your bitcoins by looking at your smartphone, which is more difficult, but if they use force, they can do it. That is, they can get you to transfer your bitcoins to them. It has become more often, and no one is surprised that someone has robbed someone and stolen their bitcoins. In general, if you become a victim, there is a high probability that not only cash but also bitcoins can be stolen from you.

At this moment, cash or fiat is more secured over Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies simply because it is safe from sudden downfall on its value (inflation rate is a different story),meaning it has less risk.But if it is security concerning anonymity, Bitcoin has its edge because of this blockchain. But I am not concluding. This technology is still young and there are lots of room for improvement. Through years, more countries will adapt this technology or currency as an option for medium of payment. And that will be the time we would see if Bitcoin and other cryptos are acknowledged to be used on a daily basis.
Accidentally sending it to scammers is a bit situational and is something which won't happen on a daily basis. That will have something to do with user negligence.

To be fair, fiat has been around for hundreds of years and we have used it for so many generations, even though it has many problems, it is still useful in our lives. I know bitcoin has many advantages over fiat in many ways, I am a bitcoin investor myself but I have never compared them and brought the bad things of fiat to denigrate, smear it because I still use it every day. My life has changed a lot thanks to bitcoin so I am happy and grateful to be able to use both. As long as you know how to use them properly, you will find the two are worth surviving together.

Bitcoin and Cash both are different things. Cryptocurrency and Fiat both are usually using different method. Why you compare them?I Think, both are more secure their own way.So bitcoin and cash their security and facility of their own system. But i Think, which one you believe then this one is more secure for you.

While cash transaction are great for making purchases or sales with a lot of anonymity the security aspect of cash if not great in my opinion. Most people will be reluctant to engage in larger size cash transaction, because they afraid to carry around it. The risk of getting rob is too high in my opinion. That is why I only have small bills and not a lot of cash with me when I go to the city. Also we should be aware that cash transaction don't offer 100% anonymity anymore, whenever we use cash we need to physically meet other people and this can be seen by others too. CCTV and facial recognition became very popular over the last 10 years and it's hard to avoid it in many countries today. Just take London for example, all of the major places are fully covered by CCTV. So whenever you meet someone to make a transaction with large sums of money, this could be recorded. Not that this is a bad thing, it provides a lot of security, but also takes away the anonymity in public places. Bitcoin and other crypto currencies seem like the best way to make transactions that are secure and outside of the banking industry.

I do international trade, and for me, bitcoin is more convenient, of course I think security depends not only on bitcoin itself, but also my hardware wallet. Banking For me, security is a factor that I ignore, more of a habit.

Cash can equally be sent to someone who is far off,  because our forefathers did it back in the 90s, and just that it's slow and could take days before finally delivered. And on the other hand, this cash which you said would have been your most preferred option for 100% anonymous still has it's demerits, as it Is prone to theft and can be duplicated in counterfeit compared to the other two Bitcoin and Online payment.

Which you believe is more secure is highly dependent upon your definition of secure.  Sure, cash is nice because you can take it with you and spend it without the need for electronics or an internet connection.  That makes some people feel secure.  Who doesn't have that hidden $20 dollar bill stuffed in their wallet?

However, if you're talking about security like the government is trying to seize your funds, then cash is clearly the easier target.  Whether that's cash on your person or in a bank account, the government can just take it from you.  Bitcoin offers you the ability to secure your coins to the point where nobody else can take them from you, and that to some people is everything.

Security in cash is all about secured on its value and it's also made by the government, that's security.

While for bitcoin, its network is secured and thanks to the miners and nodes providers out there to maintain its security.

This is actually true, terrorists are using cash and I don't understand why there would always be those "experts" that revert this idea for bitcoin. Although it's a fact that it's really been used in the dark places.

Not sure what you mean here. Nodes are indeed required in a peer-to-peer network. Obviously. But, you make it sound as if a central server is required to process payments. "p2p server" rather makes little sense.

Don't get you here neither. What's smarter in spending bitcoin, and in comparison with what?

Cash as in banknotes and metal coins.
How is cash not anonymous?
Do the bill you hand over to some grocery store carry your name on it? Are they registered with your name in some database? Can someone looking at a bill track you or see how many $ you had in your wallet 10 years after you made the purchase?
So, what aspect of handling cash do you think is breaking your privacy and revealing personal details to others?


And cash is not?

It's irreversiblity can actually have a con as a payment method during purchase at shops. Say a bad purchase is done and a refund is needed then this could only be done manually creating extra work for the shop keeper if there many refunds to be done.

But generally bitcoin inflation hedge or it been a store of value makes it edges over cash. And against credit card it's low transaction fee makes more preferred

Bitcoin is a smart way of spending, however, the manner in which some people spend bitcoins doesn't differentiate them from cash like they spend bitcoin on exchanges and get verified with exposed privacy, which breaks the purpose of bitcoin. To spend smartly, privacy must be preserved to the minimum level otherwise, I don't see the reason why use Bitcoin in the first place.


The frequent unexpected volatility is what bothered me with bitcoin as a means of payment, cash is prone to inflation while Bitcoin is not but volatility remains an issue. Bitcoin is more of a store of value than means of payment in my opinion, though I can't deny its merit of instantaneous payment.

As the op correctly points out, there are pros and cons for both cash and Bitcoin, and I'd say a lot depends on the needs of a person and factors taken into consideration. If it's for everyday purchases like groceries, local transactions are enough. Cash is also, unfortunately, sometimes almost a must if you are in a place where digitalization didn't quite kick off or where it's temporarily at risk because of power shortages or something like this. Also, while Bitcoin is borderless, let's not forget that it's also usually not accepted as payment, so it's not very helpful that you could use it if you actually can't. At the same time, if a person has some savings and doesn't want them to become devaluated, I'd say Bitcoin is better than cash (if you're okay with waiting for perhaps a couple of years) because cash is steadily losing value (inflation) and in times like the current recession, it can lose much more than usual, without bouncing back.

Let's put the credit card away because its actually the money we spent we actually don't own so its like interest free loan.

Comparing cash and bitcoin in security then definitely bitcoin is highly secured cause its irreversible, can't be duplicated, no Central authority to make changes also there is no hidden fees.

With cash you can spend almost anywhere but only in the country because its not going to be accepted as currency in another country and as security someone can easily steal your physical wallet and take all your money which is not possible with bitcoins.

Bitcoin combines the advantages of credit cards while providing relatively anonymous transactions free of the influence of undesirable intermediaries like physical cash does. With bitcoin, it is possible to make fast, borderless, censorship-free payments in the most secure and trustless manner, and, what is more important, bitcoin is barely susceptible to the influence of financial manipulators of the traditional world. Unlike physical cash. The main reason physical cash is less secure than decentralized currency such as bitcoin is that it is still money issued and controlled by the government. The government can't effectively track your cash transactions, but it can control those transactions remotely via different regulations, limitations, and draconian measures. They can dictate the price of your cash because they are in power to manage the economy via printing. They can dictate which goods and services you are allowed to pay for with physical cash: people who accept cash in illegal transactions are risking to find themselves in jail, which is why they will prefer either credit cards or their substitutes also fully controlled by governments. It all doesn't sound very secure, at least not for continuous payments.

do we really need to compare these two about which is much secure?


Bitcoin(cryptocurrency) is the safest , this cannot be taken from us unless we don't know how to handle it , while Cash can easily be taken , even banks and Vaults being  broken and take our funds out.


Bitcoin is the best answer.


so it is Bitcoin that is safe comparing to other.

Although many people say that cash has a lot of limitations and should not be used, I see fiat and bitcoin both have their own use cases, pros and cons of each. Cannot say that bitcoin is the best, is all we need and government cash is useless. Bitcoin was born and ushered in a new era, one that allows us to respect our privacy but not so that we forget about fiat and start vilifying it. We should remember that we have been using it for hundreds of years and it is still our main daily trading tool. Fiat depreciates over time, but that doesn't mean it will die or become completely useless. The best way is that we should balance both and use according to the most suitable cases to bring high efficiency and convenience.

Each of it has benefits and disadvantages. I would say it depends on how you care for it and where you need it.
For example if you would (and could) make payments for daily purchases it's quite different than storing value for your savings.
Of course, cash is more suited as a currency while Bitcoin is more suited as a store of value.
There are still some unforseen issues which can affect Cash and / or Bitcoin but in general I would say Cash is better for purchases and Bitcoin is better as a store of value.

There are a number of advantages and disadvantages to both Bitcoin and cash. One cannot entirely replace the other. Perhaps you could add that with cash, you can spend it literally anywhere anytime. That's not possible with Bitcoin. But the problem with cash is that it is always gradually losing value. That's not the case with Bitcoin. This is the main problem with cash, the embodiment of fiat. Moreover, there's also the issue of counterfeit bills and coins. There's no counterfeit Bitcoin.

Bitcoin is more secured than cash, fiat currency or CBDCs. With Bitcoin, nobody can control you IF you use a non custodial wallet with which you have private key / wallet seed and you can store your bitcoin safely; you are free to broadcast your bitcoins; you are free to use changed address, choose inputs for your transactions; you are free to choose fee rate for your transaction.

Most important, nobody can either seize your bitcoins in that wallet or steal it from you. Only you can have access to it and if you don't give up the access, your bitcoins is yours.

What's the reason to differentiate between cash and credit card? both of them are same, cash isn't anonymous since they can track your money from your banks and when you want to trade with other people, they're already recognize who you're, your face and where you trade (by CCTV). It's very wrong to define cash is 100% anonymous, it's better if you learn what is anonymous first.

In short Cash and Credit Card is same since banks is the one who create it and it's centralized, while Bitcoin doesn't need any third party and decentralized.

The term secure holds different meaning with fiat and with cryptocurrency. Based on the fact, fiat is secure in one way and cryptocurrency in the other way.

For users who wants the cash to be under their control, bitcoin is the best choice against fiat. For users who doesn't care of someone having control over our funds this isn't an issue.

Bitcoin is secure as it can't be faked whereas fiat can be faked and unlimited which makes it worse.

This is totally true or fact which they do really represent out pro's and con's when it comes to payment structure or utility overall.There are indeed people who do really value anonymity and there are ones
who doesn't really care since fiat and other typical digital transactions could really do the job, which it isnt really that already necessary for them on using up other payment methods.
There are people who do also making some switch up in between and just like you said where it would be totally depending on what you do need on particular situations
or transactions.You are the ones who would be finding out on which one is better and which one is not.

Fiat is fine for me as local transactions but when it comes to paying online I can not go for credit or debit cards. Shopping sites or other websites can read all my data. It doesn't make sense to me.
It is a relief that nowadays some of the big companies or shopping sites are accepting bitcoin and other coins as payments.

The conclusion is actually more complex than that. Each payment method has its pros and cons, and different users have different requirements. For some privacy is critical, for others its not a concern. A drug dealer has different concerns than someone who buys groceries in the nearest supermarket. Or things like being able to make transactions across borders are only a benefit if you plan to make such transactions.

Payment cards and cash still represent nearly all financial transactions because they suit the needs of people.

Sorry but how is cash transactions anonymous? Except if the cash you are referring to here is not the physical cash we spend, that is otherwise known as fiat,  then I would like to know the type of cash you are referring to as anonymous, because to me, cash transactions are nothing near to being anonymous.
Cash and credit/debit card transactions are the most centralized form of transactions, anything centralized is not anonymous...
This is my opinion though.


Fiat, otherwise known as cash can be sent to people or some one afar of, through western union, money gram and the likes, the down side is that, it is highly centralized, takes days if not weeks and months before the receiving party gets the package, and it also cost alot in fees as well.

Yeah, I agree with you on this one, bitcoin is a decentralized currency and payment system, highly efficient and absolutely secure and boarderless

Cash has counterparty risk, while Bitcoin doesnt. It cant really compete with Bitcoin in long term security, because theres no security mechanism to prevent cash from getting inflated, getting replaced by new currencies or being taken out of circulation by policies for example. This is the bigger flaw of cash in terms of security, which basically makes it an insecure store of value.

Cash payment is done offline, when spending with paper money no real identity is needed. A buyer can spend their currencies without the bank coming into the picture, no name required because the receiver doesn't need the name of the buyer for transaction to be completed. Bitcoin does hide identity but it is not completely anonymous. Despite Bitcoin not requiring identity to own some coin and spend them the public ledger reveals every transaction on different bitcoin block explorer and as such merge transactions of a particular wallet together and can lead to one's identity been revealed if caution isn't taken.

Where the limitation of cash payment come in is where it involves distant transaction, one that cut across distant boarders and bulky transactions that will seems risky to move with cash. Credit cards over the years substituted for this but we sold out our identity in exchange to execute our transactions using cards that got our full information tied to.

Bitcoin on the other hand doesn't work in an offline manner. But the advantage it has is no central server is required but a peer-to-peer network keep the ledger trusted and immutable which is the only way to provide a data that cannot be tempered on nor nullified since every transaction that goes into every block is confirmed by participating nodes.

Why will Bitcoin remain most preferred over every other traditional payment option including cash is thus:

CREDITCARD	CASH	BITCOIN
Not anonymous	Anonymous	Pseudonymous
Distance transaction	Local transaction	Boarderless transaction
Central Sever	No server needed	A p2p server needed
Smart Spending	Risky Spending	Smarter Spending
Funds hardly noticeable	Bulky Sums obvious	Not Noticeable since it has no physical form
Can be Compromised	No compromise	Fully trusted

Cash transaction would have been a perfect option for 100% anonymous transaction but it cannot be sent to some one who is afar off. Bitcoin stands out as the perfect option not as an anonymous tool but as a private coin with no central server.