Topic: How would you store >100 Bitcoins? - page 36. (Read 42368 times)

Thanks guys, I've gotten some really good replies. My only question at this point is, why does everyone suggest Armory over electrum? Is there any good reason for this or just preference?

Three good options, all reasonably secure...
1) if you've got $120, get http://www.bitcointrezor.com
2) if you've got $40, get https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/mycelium-entropy
3) if you've got skill and time or need true institutional level security, get https://bitcoinarmory.com

If you have $0 and no free time/skills:
4) print off a few private keys: https://www.bitaddress.org/bitaddress.org-v2.9.3-SHA1-7d47ab312789b7b3c1792e4abdb8f2d95b726d64.html
5) Make an encrypted disk image to hold a newly created wallet using an offline computer...write down some addresses in the wallet, send funds to addresses once you've stored a copy of the encrypted disk image in many places.

I am really amazed at how many options there are these days. 5) used to be the only way...and that actually does take a fair amount of time of you don't have a computer that won't wver touch a network again.

On an encrypted paper wallet generated by a Piper Wallet with backup copies stored in alternate locations.

I also do this exact same thing. I have wallets of various sizes between 2 BTC, 5 BTC, 10 BTC. Never larger than 10 btc.

That way when it comes time to spend, I can pick the closest wallet size to what I need the BTC for, and leave the rest safe and untouched.

Armory for cold storage I agree, control both your public and private keys.

I'd be comfortable using Armory with an offline computer for the cold storage, but the difficult part would be where to store the backup(s). Maybe do e.g. a 3-of-5, where I keep two parts at home, one at a safe deposit box, and two kept by (separate) trusted family or friends.

Hello, can you Armory guys please explain why Armory is safer than Electrum?
They both have deterministic offline wallets, from "trusted" devs.

Electrum is easier to use, but if it is not 100% safe, then i will quit using it.
Would you store 1,000+ btc in Electrum?

Please explain     Thanks!

On a buried hardrive.

I'd love to have this problem.

can't you just do a paper wallet with phrases that you create yourself? i'd do that, and split the coins into 25 BTC chunks.

100 bitcoins is a lot. I only wish I had that many myself to be honest that would be quite impressive.

In answer to your question if I had 100 bitcoins I would definitely choose to store them in an offline cold wallet and store around 10 bitcoins in one wallet before opening another wallet to do the same as previous.

Electrum is my favorite cold storage solution.

Brain wallets have advantages and disadvantages.  "better" depends on your point of view.

Do the domic o'brien 's memorization course, then memorize your private keys and rest assured no one will find them.


Or just generate the private keys in an offline computer, then write them down where no one will find them

Do not store your coins in an online wallet, if you decide too remember its now possible for someone to take your coins in this scenario. Do not generate Private Keys on a machine that is connected to the the internet, its possible someone has a copy of your private key. If you generate a Private key offline, format the machine after offline and or remove this HD and lock it up/destroy it.

I would keep ~50 on a machine with an offline Armory wallet, the other 50+ would use an address that is generated on a machine that had its hard drives disassembled and destroyed. Take these Private keys generated on the machine sans HD, then hammer the private keys into a piece of Copper and Brass, write it down on a piece of paper, save it encrypted with PGP on a bunch of different USB Drives, 3 backups per type of usb drive. Put all of them in sandwhich bag and put it into a fire/waterproof safe.

None of your keys should be able to be compromised at this point except if they physically attack you, also if your storing 50+ coins offline make sure you use an address that has not spent any coins before.

As a rule of thumb if I am storing a new block of coins, I tend to buy a new drive or a brand new small/cheap netbook or similar type of device for the generation of the address and for the storage of the  key. Disabling network devices etc before hand...

I concur with the above. I use armory, and just send fractional bitcoin to my android mycelium wallet for daily spending.  I did just buy a Trezor yesterday, so I'll be using that once it arrives.

That's exactly why deterministic wallets were invented.

You create one offline, print m-of-n paper backups of the seed, then you can have as many addresses as you could ever want and your backups are valid forever.

You do not really gain any diversification by not splitting up coins

Armory does not belong in the same category as Coinbase.

Coinbase is a Bitcoin bank that takes your actual coins and gives you bitcoin IOUs for them.

Armory is the best cold storage solution for holding your own coins, better than brainwallets or paper wallets by far.

Keep your secret in paper inside some cheap electronic.

For example, your fix phone, or some old computer.

Or inside free holes in objects that can't be esily stolen, like your bed or Cupboards, but of course the place you will pick must be hard to others guess.

I keep a significant portion of my bitcoins on an encrypted ironkey usb drive stored in a security deposit box and stored in a zip lock bag (in case of vault flooding, which was an issue in Manhattan after hurricane Sandy, although the ironkeys are very well contructed and would probably work after a year or more underwater). The ironkey uses hardware-based encryption and automatically erases and disables the drive after 10 wrong password attempts, so brute force isn't an option. The file on the drive is itself is encrypted with a password in combination with a keyfile that I don't keep anywhere near the bank.  I have an encrypted copy stored within a personal ironkey, also using keyfiles that I do not keep locally or anywhere that the drive itself routinely travels to or gets used.

Just remember, you're much more likely to lose coins than have them stolen (i.e., forgotten password, hard drive failure, house fire, ruined paper wallet).  For that reason I always make sure I have 2 working copies which are physically separated.  I also have redundancies for the keyfiles, which are necessary to recover the wallets, but its easy to keep copies of those in various places since they by themselves are not valuable to anyone.  The keyfiles are not labeled as such, obviously (you can use any kind of file).