Well I can tell you 0 confirms means just that, that there have been zero confirmations of the transaction and it hasn't been included in any mined blocks.
I would wait until you have at least 1 confirmation before sending anything, even with low amounts.
If the transaction amount is significant, I would wait for the number of confirms in proportion to the amount of funds involved.
Personally, I would do something like:
> 1 BTC - 1 confirm is probably plenty
1 - 2 BTC - 2 confirmations
2 - 5 BTC - 3 confirmations
5 - 10 BTC - 4 confirmations
10- 20 BTC - 5 confirmations
20+ BTC - 6 confirmations
Adjust this scale to your level of tolerance for loss and the transaction's sensitivity to time, but again at least wait for 1 confirmation. It is generally accepted that 6 confirmations is pretty secure, but this level can take well over an hour at times.
I should also add that if the person sending you the Bitcoin added a low or no fee when sending, the first confirmation could take quite some time. I have had a few low fee transactions take up to 6 hours to get their first confirmation in recent months due to the amount of transaction backlog and miners starting to refuse to include low or no fee transactions in their blocks.
If the person who sent you the BTC is complaining or rushing you and you haven't seen 1 confirm yet, verify with them if they included a proper fee. You can also look up the transaction details as odolvlobo suggested using a block explorer, such as Blockchain.info, and it will show you the fee that was included, if any.
Topic: Receiving Bitcoin Confirmation From Other Users For Trading (Read 540 times)
It is possible to cancel a transaction that has not been confirmed.
Electrum will tell you if a transaction has been posted and when it has been confirmed. It is also a good idea to see what another node, like blockr.io or blockchain.info) says.
Electrum will tell you if a transaction has been posted and when it has been confirmed. It is also a good idea to see what another node, like blockr.io or blockchain.info) says.
anyone ?
I send bitcoins to sportsbooks. When i do this, usually it takes a bit of time for my account to be credited. Sometimes very fast, but sometimes a bit slower. When i receive a bitcoin payout from a sportsbook, it usually takes a bit of time as well. I know whenever i send bitcoin or receive, it always shows the amount of bitcoins unconfirmed but it does show up later on. I use electrum.
I have traded my bitcoin for poker funds before and when i do this, once i sent bitcoin to someone, they wait until they receive the bitcoin before they send me the poker funds or bank account fund etc. Now i want to trade my poker funds and bank account funds for their bitcoin. Sometimes i send first, other times someone else sends etc depending on who has the stronger rep.
Well if they send me bitcoin first, how do i know 100 percent i received the funds on electrum? Thus i don't want a case where they tell me they send the bitcoin... then i look at my electrum wallet and i see the amount of bitcoin send to me pending but not confirmed... has that time thing next to it etc... if i see this, does that mean 100 percent the bitcoins are sent to me and it cannot be reversed? I know bitcoin is not reversible but then again why do certain sites for example require 2, 5 or 10 confirmations then? Obviously if i see the bitcoin sent to my electrum where the amount of btc is added to my btc balance, i know 100 percent i received the bitcoin. However, that usually takes a bit of time for that to happen. And obviously i dont want for that until i send the poker/bank account funds? So i want to know how am i sure 100 percent, the btc sent to me to my electrum is sent? Now if a site sends me bitcoins, i don't have to worry since its legit. But if its another user... well how do i know 100 percent? If it shows pending... it that good enough? Say someone sends me 5 bitcoins... if i see 5 bitcoin in my electrum wallet even though theres 0 confirmation or 1 confirmation, is that enough to send the poker/bank account funds?
I have traded my bitcoin for poker funds before and when i do this, once i sent bitcoin to someone, they wait until they receive the bitcoin before they send me the poker funds or bank account fund etc. Now i want to trade my poker funds and bank account funds for their bitcoin. Sometimes i send first, other times someone else sends etc depending on who has the stronger rep.
Well if they send me bitcoin first, how do i know 100 percent i received the funds on electrum? Thus i don't want a case where they tell me they send the bitcoin... then i look at my electrum wallet and i see the amount of bitcoin send to me pending but not confirmed... has that time thing next to it etc... if i see this, does that mean 100 percent the bitcoins are sent to me and it cannot be reversed? I know bitcoin is not reversible but then again why do certain sites for example require 2, 5 or 10 confirmations then? Obviously if i see the bitcoin sent to my electrum where the amount of btc is added to my btc balance, i know 100 percent i received the bitcoin. However, that usually takes a bit of time for that to happen. And obviously i dont want for that until i send the poker/bank account funds? So i want to know how am i sure 100 percent, the btc sent to me to my electrum is sent? Now if a site sends me bitcoins, i don't have to worry since its legit. But if its another user... well how do i know 100 percent? If it shows pending... it that good enough? Say someone sends me 5 bitcoins... if i see 5 bitcoin in my electrum wallet even though theres 0 confirmation or 1 confirmation, is that enough to send the poker/bank account funds?
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