What is Bitcoin Mixing And Why Do People Use It?

By Sumedha Bose

Bitcoin is the one great innovation of this last decade.

It has quickly found its way in and around the mainstream society and people’s digital wallets.

One of the most significant reasons why cryptocurrencies have become widely accepted is because it allows users to make anonymous transactions.

However, sometimes this anonymity can be jeopardized. If you are familiar with how blockchain technology works, you will know that your entire transaction history is public.

On one hand this guarantees a transparent system of exchange, but on the other hand, it also makes you vulnerable to spies.

You May Also Read: Is Bitcoin Really Decentralized?

How Does Bitcoin Mixing Work?

Bitcoin Mixing is a relatively popular process used by people who are part of the Bitcoin Economy. However, they outsource the work to a bitcoin mixing company.

In the bitcoin mixing process, people send their bitcoins to a mixing company, who send them the equivalent amount of other people’s bitcoins, at a new address.

The coins are sent after an arbitrary amount of time to avoid any suspicion and tracking, and the company charges a small fee to execute this action.

Using a third party mixing company essentially breaks off the link between the sender’s bitcoin wallet and the receiver’s wallet, making sure that the user can have his/her anonymity back.

You May Also Read: How To Make Bitcoin Transactions Anonymous?

Why Are People Mixing Bitcoins?

As stated before, anonymity is one of the most sought after features of bitcoin that attracts investors and traders to use this cryptocurrency.

People use bitcoins to work their way around centralized regulations imposed by the governement. Thus, decentralization is essential for any user.

One’s transaction history, by the virtue of being public, is vulnerable to attacks. Any outsider can have knowledge of your transactions, and with careful tracking and obseravtion, can figure out your actual identity.

Bitcoin mixing assures the user that their anonymity is intact. Especially those who function in the drak markets, use bitcoin mixing quite frequently to protect their confidential information.

This is a tried and tested way to get someone off your tail and completely trick them into losing track of you. Thus it is advisable to use bitcoin mixing, whenever you feel that your anonymity could be jeopardized.

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Sumedha Bose

Sumedha uses words as her crutch to get by in life. She takes a keen interest in debating, dancing and destroying the patriarchy in her free time.

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