Thread by @braiins_systems

1/ The cypherpunk ethos runs deep among many #bitcoin miners.

As mining gets more public attention, some from misinformed politicians, we want to share info on how miners can better protect their hash & privacy.

TLDR: not that simple to get #secretsats but doable. Thread 👇

2/ First thing’s first: 𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗷𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴.

If you don’t take any measures to protect your privacy, you’re vulnerable to having your hashrate stolen. And if the attacker is sophisticated, you might not even know about it.

3/ This is because Stratum V1 uses human-readable data transfers, so your ISP or even a nosy neighbor can see that you’re mining based on your activity.

It’s similar to HTTP, where your ISP can see everything you do including entering passwords and payment details.

4/ Stratum V2 protects against eavesdropping and hashrate hijacking by encrypting the data transfers between pools and miners.

It’s like the HTTPS of bitcoin mining.

5/ But Stratum V2 on its own doesn’t ensure maximum privacy.

With HTTPS, your ISP can’t see 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑑𝑜 on websites, but they can still see 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ sites you visit.

If you want to hide that, you need a VPN…

6/ The problem is that VPNs typically increase latency, which matters quite a bit for mining.

A better solution for miners is a DNS proxy with support for encrypted DNS protocols such as DNSCrypt v2. For miners without Stratum V2, this is a decent alternative.

7/ However, a DNS proxy still won’t hide the sites you access from your ISP. While it’s far from foolproof, a good way to increase privacy with ISPs that doesn’t harm performance is with a SOCKS proxy.

8/ Your ISP would see that you're accessing the SOCKS proxy, but it would be more difficult to figure out the actual service you are connecting to. Since a SOCKS proxy doesn’t use encryption, it would still be wise to use DNSCrypt with it for better security (if using Stratum V1)

9/ If you’re using Stratum V2, a SOCKS proxy isn’t necessary and it would be easier to set up a cloud server with a TCP proxy (e.g. HAProxy) and route your mining activity through that.

10/ In summary, you’re far better protected with Stratum V2 and/or a DNS proxy than without. V2 is also 2-3x more efficient than V1, so you get encryption w/o performance degradation.

For more technical details on these solutions, check out or article: braiins.com/blog/data-priv…

11/ Extra note: the above points are for mining activity, but don’t forget about general web browsing best practices either. For example, using a VPN or Tor when visiting a mining pool website is still a good idea for those who value privacy.

12/ It’s a challenge for miners to maximize privacy & security without introducing costly latency.

Ultimately, no solution is absolute. But this would make the task of detecting your mining activity much more difficult, at least.

13/ If you have any technical questions on Stratum V2, different proxy options, or #bitcoin mining in general @janbraiins is the guy to talk to. Ask Him Anything in the replies⬇️

End/ All of the privacy enhancements listed above are optional. They require extra work. But nobody ever said freedom money comes free.

https://twitter.com/LuchoPoletti/status/1361872700625457154