Topic: Completely new to Bitcoin just downloaded Electrum, help set it up properly plz. - page 2. (Read 855 times)

Thomas29, bitcoin is not fiat, you should know that before you became involved in the world of cryptocurrency. Now you have the option to adapt, learn, and accept things which are important in this world, or to just sold bitcoin and turn back to fiat.

2FA in Electrum is not free and you should know that before you experience another surprise. Read more about this option here : Two Factor Authentication

I would not agree with o_e_l_e_o that few hundred $ stored on desktop / mobile wallet isn't worth of one hardware wallet which is cost between $50 and $100, but it is the personal thing of every user and the way he wants to protect his investment.

Electrum can be very safe wallet, but it is safe only how much is the one who uses it is aware of what he is doing. Download only from legit site, verify signature, set strong password, use good AV, antimalware, firewall and a little common sense.

Because you set a fee that was too low. Your transaction will now be sitting in the pool of "unconfirmed transactions", from which the transactions with the highest fee are given priority and will confirm first. There are ways you can increase the fee to speed up your transaction. The easiest is RBF, but blockchain.com wallets do not support this. The other is CPFP, which you can do from your Electrum wallet.

Open Electrum, create a new wallet, and select "Wallet with two-factor authentication".

The best option for using Electrum is to use it with a hardware wallet such as Ledger or Trezor, although if you are only transacting small amounts like a few hundred dollars, then the expenses probably isn't worth it for you.

This is fairly standard practice when requesting a specific amount, due to the fluctuating price. Simply request a new one.

  Lol anyways I had to Buy more Bitcoin long story than I am comfortable with and sent 1$ to my Electrum Desktop Wallet. It worked and then I went to send a 190USD to the Wallet and it just simply says unconfirmed why is it saying this? How do I set up 2 Factor Authentication with my Electrum Wallet? It says nothing about it and the only thing protecting my Desktop Electrum Wallet is a stupid Password which I now understand EVERYTHING ABOUT BITCOIN is like a merry-go-around of time people repeating the exact same novel in their own words and it's exhausting not being able to get one single inch in the right direction due to the information being all over the place from every single person that posts replies here.


  Just saying it how I'm seeing it nobody get butt hurt/offended now lol were all grown adults right?


  Now this 190USD was meant to be spent right away but the Bitcoin Address the Seller gave Me expired which he did not tell Me anything but I would have to make the purchase today and not that this Bitcoin Address is going to change if you don't make it today if I had known that I never ever would of bought that much Bitcoin since it's fluctuating up and down and when ever I invest any amount of Bitcoin it's at 9,300.50 Cents right now but it goes up and goes back down in literally a matter of seconds.


  I read about this unconfirmed Bitcoin Payments being Sent to Electrum and basically... Essentially I have to wait for it to bounce back to my whatever your little heart desires calling the terminology for the www.blockchain.com Wallet (I simply choose to Call it a Wallet for simplicity sakes.)  since everyone describes it their own personalized way. I like this anxiety and they say Bitcoin the future and I think the future has come and past and maybe PAX whatever that is if it works like I think it is supposed to it keep Bitcoin alive but the way it is described is to good to be true.

This formatting is horrible to read.

If your computer is compromised and an attacker gains access to your credit card details, it will most probably be sold on a dark market, yes.


If you are setting up an offline computer (always offline, not even online a single minute), you basically do have a cold storage.
This already eliminates tons of attack vectors.

You'd still have to think about how to transfer signed/unsigned transactions and the direct access to your computer (evil maid scenario).
If you have a concept for both of them (transfer / HW access), your coins will be extremely secured.


I am not exactly sure what you mean with your hard drive and the reformatting. Can you elaborate this please ?

first lets clarify your question with bad terminology.
- an online wallet is a wallet that is connected to internet. for example if you install Electrum on your PC and connect to internet, your Electrum wallet is an online wallet.
- a web wallet is a wallet that is hosted somewhere on a server and you visit it through a website. like blockchain.com

now 2FA concept is different in a web wallet and in Electrum (the online wallet). for the web wallet you only get a secondary password that you have to enter to have access to your account. for Electrum the 2FA is not just a password, it is a third party holding 1 of 3 keys, 2 of which are required to spend coins (you hold the other one) so they sign the transaction that you half-sign and give them so it gives a better security.

also online or even web wallets are NOT equal to "DO NOT USE". they have their own usages and should only be used for the purpose they sever. for example an online wallet is your hot wallet, just like the physical wallet you keep in your back pocket and don't store $1 million in it, instead store a small pocket money that you want to spend.

When someone gets your password (due to your computer being compromised), they can at any time copy your wallet and spend your coins. So, that means your coins are totally compromised.

If you're using a 2FA wallet, at least you need the 2FA code (which changes every 30 seconds) to spend the money. This means that the hacker can only steal your coins if he's seeing your screen (or what you type) at the moment you try to make a tx and type the code (so he can use it first in his own device). Or... if he also infected the device which has the 2FA (e.g you phone).

If you think your computer is compromised, DON'T SEND ANY MONEY TO ANY WALLET ON IT. If you do, there is a chance your coins will be stolen. What you need to do is format your computer and do a clean reinstall, then create a new brand wallet, and then send your coins to it. Now, if you really want to be 100% safe, buy a Nano S or Trezor and use it to store your coins.

Quick question about Online Hot Wallets what if your Computer is compromised wouldn't the password and 2-Factor Authentication be no different than Electrum with a password and no 2FA? Just a question of curiosity don't rip my head off please lol I understand Online Hot Wallets equals = DO NOT USE... I am worried my Computer might be compromised you all make it seem like if I make a large Bitcoin Purchase from my Electrum Wallet I will get jacked for all my Bitcoin because I never payed a Ledger Nano S which I would if it was slightly cheaper.

So what your saying is without a EVEN with a Ledger Nano S U.S.B. Hard-Drive it would literally at best only protect my Bitcoin and every other little bit of information like the Coinmama Visa Debit Card Number will be compromised and that every single thing of value will be sold on the dark net and we already established if my Computer is infected Testing my 12 Seed Password is as good as giving them my Money. Now my question I can't see how you could use Cold Storage either without Buying a Ledger Nano S but if I can somehow Buy another cheap Computer and preferably Install Linux for the sake of the fact it will never be online or in use so who cares and I Buy 32GB U.S.B. Hard-Drives I use for storing Files on my Xbox 360 which fill up fast. That way I would always have a new Hard Drive that after sending Bitcoin from my Cold-Storage Computer and then to the potentially Infected Computer I would be just simply Re-Formatting the Hard-Drive to run on my Xbox 360 and I'm not sure if I could recycle Re-Formatted U.S.B. Hard-Drives or if that idea would even work so please don't bite my head off for asking this simple question. I am SIMPLY just trying to be as SAFE as I can POSSIBLY BE nothing more and nothing less if I can't accomplish anything but a Desktop Wallet for Security than so be it[/u

  

If we are talking sums of around $50, then yes, a hardware wallet is unnecessary. It is perfectly reasonable to store that amount on Electrum or another software wallet. I carry more than that around on a mobile wallet every day, for any on-the-go spending I may need to do. Yes, it's not as secure as a hardware wallet, but for such a small amount it's an acceptable risk.

I would repeat the advice above to generally avoid web wallets, however.

There are no bitcoin 'accounts'.
Blockchain.com offers a web wallet, where your private keys are stored on their server (encrypted by your password).

Any wallet is more secure than that.




You don't need to delete any file to check whether your mnemonic code (the seed encoded into 12 words) is correct.
You can simply create a new 'wallet' (more like: wallet file) and enter the same words to check whether it reproduces the same 'wallet' (addresses, etc. ).




If a hardware wallet costs more than you own in BTC, it would be a complete waste.
Rather have some BTC stored on a desktop wallet than no BTC on a hardware wallet.

However, with the nano s an infected computer can not compromise your private keys / transactions.

Hardware wallets (at least the good ones (i.e. ledger nano, trezor ,..), not some shit like the bitfi garbage) do have a secure element built in which does not leak the private keys under any circumstances.
When you create a transaction on your computer (which itself is still 'vulnerable' to attacks), it is being handed to the hardware wallet.

Then you have to check the receipent / amount on your hardware wallet (built-in screen). If it does not match with what you have entered, don't confirm the transaction (in this case your computer created a compromised transaction).
If you see the recipient and amount is correct, you can confirm it with pressing a button on your hardware device. No tampering possible here.




Well, the problem is not cryptocurrency in special.

Malware can be obfuscated and coded to bypass any AV checks. This applies to bitcoin-stealing malware the same way it applies to any other form of malware (except maybe ransomware which encrypts everything on your harddrive, that is very easy to spot).

It is not hard at all to infect a computer if it isn't explicitly maintained to be properly secured (which is not that easy, especially not in windows).


If you have ANY valuable data on your computer which you can not afford to lose, you are at risk.
But would you say that computers aren't the future ? I guess not.

Crypto is just some kind of a 'special case' because sensitive data in cryptocurrency equals money.
While other data would first have to be sold on a dark market or anywhere else, stealing private keys instantly gives you money. Therefore it is a lucrative target.





A web wallet is less secure in every aspect.

If you computer is compromised, an attacker can also gain access to your web wallet once you log in from this computer.
A web wallet has all the same attack vectors a desktop- or mobile wallet has, plus multiple others additionally.


Set a wallet password in electrum, keep sure to have your software up-to-date, including your operating system, don't download cracked or shady software and use your computer and the internet with common sense.
This is more than enough to protect <100$ worth of BTC.

Thank you for all the replies its a little bit confusing but it's still helpful thank you.


I just made an 80$ USD Purchase and have just made a purchase with the Bitcoin I am using a Pre-Paid Credit Card to Buy it from Coinmama.com. That being said Coinmama.com only allows Minimum of 60USD Purchase of Bitcoin... So sometimes I got like 20$ or 40$ left that I either can't spend right away until I get more Money or I need somewhere to just put that is key word here slightly more secure than putting it in the Blockchain.com what ever you want to Call the Bitcoin Account in technical terms.


  Now I am going to Download the Portable Version on my U.S.B. WD Passport 2TB Hard-Drive will I be able to Test the Seed Code by Restoring my Empty Desktop Wallet on my Portable Hard Drive? I am assuming I will have to manually delete that one file after uninstalling Electrum or does it not matter if I Download the Portable Version on my U.S.B. 2TB Hard-Drive so that it's completely separated.


   If I am unplugging my Computer from the Internet and Sending Money from my Portable Bitcoin Wallet to the Computer Hard-Drive Desktop Wallet... I understand my Computer can possible be compromised blah blah blah. Even if I wasted more money on a Ledger Nano S which literally would Cost Me more than TWICE AS MUCH Money in Bitcoin USD I Purchase and then spend literally the very moment it is received to my Blockchain.com Account. If I did Buy a Ledger Nano S someone could just simply wait until I go to to use and than use my "Infected Computer" to steal the Bitcoins there is no such thing as perfect security without using Cold Storage I simply BARELY EVER use Bitcoin and when I do use it's very small small super duper small amounts of USD and for a very very extremely short amount of time that I would even keep them before spending like a matter of less than 30 Minutes literally.


  I guess the people who are desperate enough to get passed my ESET Nod32 Anti Virus to get like 30USD in Bitcoin when I type in my Seed Code on my potentially "infected Computer" I guess they deserve and can keep the Money for all I care lol. I just don't understand how Bitcoin is going to be the future if small time users such as myself are at risk of being ripped off and are discouraged from Buying Bitcoin anymore often than they "forced" too or encouraged by Websites with Discounts for using Bitcoin or only accept Bitcoin as Payment since Paypal is a Scam and they should be shut down and someone who who is in charge of Paypal needs to be arrested.


  The entire goal I am trying to accomplish is maintaining the best security when comparing it to my Blockchain.com Account. I am not looking to put 20K of Bitcoin or even 500USD into my Electrum Wallet Like I said I would only be putting Bitcoin I either gained if it goes up in price or because I got nothing to Buy with it yet. To put it simply Buying a Ledger Nano S which would simply be a waste of money for considering how infrequent my use of it is and minor small time amount of Bitcoin I am Transferring and using for Purchases.



  

I would add a caveat that ideally (depending on your level of paranoia and how much bitcoin you are planning to store in this wallet), this should be done on an air-gapped device (i.e. a device which does not have, and will never have, internet access). An almost as good alternative would be a live Linux distro. There is a possibility (small, but not insignificant) that there is a keylogger or similar malware on your device, and by typing in your seed phrase it becomes compromised in the process.

Personally I always recommend a hardware wallet. It generates the seeds for you. If I ever have to enter a seed in to any computer or phone, I immediately consider it compromised and move all my funds to a new wallet.

try to focus on your security and how to use bitcoin properly, your backup,... these additional options aren't really game changers. for instance this particular option may only affect you if you are spending bitcoin regularly and receiving regularly so that you may see an input that is not yet confirmed and you want to spend or not spend that particular one so you use this option. otherwise for regular users who rarely spend bitcoin this option may never be useful.

apart from what @TryNinja said, you can try by actually sending a small amount to your wallet and then spending it. something like $1 would work, you won't lose any money if something were wrong and at the same time you become more familiar with the wallet and usage of bitcoin in general.

You can restore the wallet from the seed and compare the addresses.

On Electrum: File -> New/Restore -> Write a random wallet name -> Standard wallet -> I already have a seed -> Enter the seed.

Then, compare the addresses from your wallet with this one you just restored.

How do I test my Seed Key/Code to make sure it is working before I begin using and Transferring Money to the Electrum Wallet.

There is an "Portable version" link on https://electrum.org/#download

  Thank you very much for your reply this is very helpful. Where do I go on the Electrum Website er... what exactly is it I need to Download for the "portable .exe version of electrum" so I can put it entirely on my portable U.S.B. Hard-Drive and again thank you.


  OH! I don't know if I should check the Box that says "Send only Confirmed Coins" I have no idea what that option will do and if I should select it and if their are any other options I should choose. Currently I am using Windows 7 but I am Updating to Windows 10 very soon so keep that in mind when it comes to my questions and how to set up my Electrum Wallet properly. I need help for Setting up Electrum Wallet Options such as whether or not I should check the Box next to the option for "Send only Confirmed Coins" or whether I should leave the box unchecked next to that option. If anybody with a lot of knowledge on Setting up Electrum Desktop Wallets to be set up for the best possible options to choose from in the Electrum Wallet Settings in Order to use my Wallet as efficiently as possible please let Me know.

Just FYI, uninstalling Electrum won't remove the wallet files... it's a feature to prevent loss of wallets due accidentally uninstalling etc.

You can find the wallet files in your "%AppData%\Electrum" directory... quick shortcut on Windows is:
- Press "Win+R"
- In the textbox, type: %AppData%
- Press enter
- You should see a folder named "Electrum" and in that will be a "wallets" folder, containing the wallet file(s)

Even if you attempt to install Electrum to your external drive, that will only place the application files on the drive. Windows will most likely still attempt to use this AppData folder for Electrum's data storage.

If you want the application AND all the wallet data to be on the external drive, you need to download and use the portable .exe version of Electrum... The portable .exe version creates a data directory in the same location as the .exe and stores the wallet files there.

The "installer" and "standalone" versions use the Windows %AppData% folder structure for storage by default.

So do I uninstall or keep the Electrum Wallet and where do I find these Files on my Computer are they ALL in the Electrum Folder and I just move them over onto my WD Passport Hard-drive since I am storing only 60 maybe 200 USD. If I was planning to for example get 1000USD in Bitcoin I would instantly 100% Buy a Ledger Nano S but considering the how little I use Bitcoin and how little Bitcoin I use and normally I don't have any extra Bitcoin.


  Coinmama.com is what I am using to Buy Bitcoin as I am new to it and don't know how to get it without using my Pre-Paid Credit Card to Buy Bitcoin and I send it to Blockchain and spend it instantly. The problem is that the minimum Amount of Bitcoin I can Purchase is 60$ and sometimes I need less than that to make a purchase and I am end up with a very small amount of Bitcoin left over in the Blockchain.com... whatever it is technically that you want to call it where the Bitcoin is Stored through Blockchain.com.


  So do I uninstall Electrum and Re-Install it on my 2TB Password Protected U.S.B. Hard-Drive and use the Seed Code to make sure it works or should I just move all the Electrum Files which I don't know where they all are as someone pointed out Electrum Files get stored on the Computer that are important since it will make my Electrum Wallet potentially vulnerable to attack.

For better security try to not use the same computer you use for torrenting in connection with any private keys, seeds or other financial information. You never know what nasty thing you can catch downloading torrents and you are putting your money at risk.