Bitcoin is the oldest and best-known cryptocurrency. It was born on 3 January 2009. More than 16.7 million bitcoins were in circulation as of December 2017 with a total value of about USD 250 billion. That’s still almost nothing compared to...
Most people still treat Bitcoin as a mythical pandora box which contains thieves, money launderers, scammers, terrorists, other people of the worst kind.
However, outside the realm myths and fantasy, such statements are entirely false and misleading. Thousands of programmers develop the Bitcoin network every day, and mostly for free in their spare time, as it is an open-source community-driven project standing for personal freedom and financial inclusion. It is not perfect yet, but it gets better every day.
The answer to the question “is it safe to use Bitcoin” is yes, but it also depends on how well can you manage your security.
In its ten years of history, Bitcoin, when used and stored correctly, has proven itself to be a reliable financial instrument when it comes to storing value, secure borderless peer-to-peer money transfers, and accessibility.
The protocol itself is sturdy enough to withhold even the most sophisticated attacks, and most of the bad news surrounding Bitcoin hacks are due to the third-party service providers like centralized exchanges, wallet developers, or private key mismanagement.
Of course, as with every other type of money, there are certain issues Bitcoin users need to know if they want to protect their wealth. These include Bitcoin price volatility, secure storage of cryptocurrency, use of insecure third-party services, and cybersecurity threats like hacking.
At the same time, we could also raise a question whether it is safe to use dollars and other traditional finance tools, as most of the money laundering and other nefarious activities are still conducted using traditional money. The conventional financial systems have proven to be prone to economic bubbles and crises, and the government-backed money tends to significantly devalue over time.
