Headlines about Bitcoin “hacks” often lead to misinformation. Just like every other type of program, technology, or even your day-to-day use of passwords, Bitcoin is secured in a way where it would be mathematically improbable (to the point of being as good as impossible) to break through its systems.
To date, there has been no known attack on the primarily recognised Bitcoin network that has penetrated and changed its intended purpose/functionality*, in all 10 years of its existence.
Bitcoin in particular is in fact even more secure than typical technologies, owing to the fact that it is an open-source software with hundreds of thousands of eyes able to access and audit the code for themselves.
The community powering Bitcoin is made up of the greatest minds in cryptography (the science of secure communication), technology, software development and mathematics.
Bitcoin-related “hacks” are actually more often due to human intervention or error and are typically related to the platform where the hack has occurred on. Even though the Bitcoin network itself is secure and functions as intended, malicious actors can play on the vulnerabilities outside of the network’s control.
For example, employees at an exchange may have significant access rights to the Bitcoin they are holding on your behalf, and “runaway” with the Bitcoin or a hacker may gain access to your private keys if you store them improperly (such as in plain text on your desktop).
As the technology powering Bitcoin becomes easier to work with and industry best practices become the norm rather than the exception, companies in the space will increasingly adopt the highest standard of security to ensure that user funds are safe and protected.
At Oobit, we’re heavily invested in security, not only through our stringent security protocols and systems but also through having our user funds insured. All users of the Oobit platform should take advantage of our easy-to-use interfaces and secure their accounts to prevent unauthorized access!