By Wendy's Whitepaper Contributor: Dragonwolftech
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In this article, we will look at Privacy-Coins, cryptocurrencies designed to hide the identity of their user and provide the anonymity that so many attributes to bitcoin. This list barely scratches the surface of the available privacy-focused coins on the market which will be covered in future articles.
There is a common misconception about bitcoin that never seems to go away, “bitcoin is anonymous, that’s why criminals love it!” You’ve probably heard your Senator or Member of Congress say something similar. Bitcoin is not anonymous, and it’s a public permissionless ledger.
Monero (XMR)
Monero is a popular privacy coin released in 2014. Monero uses Ring Signatures, Stealth Addresses, and Ring Confidential Transactions to keep Monero transactions hidden. Any previous Monero transactions hide a transaction initiated from a Monero wallet as all Monero wallet addresses can be used, making it impossible to know which address is involved in the transaction.
Wallets for Monero include Cake Wallet, Edge Wallet, Trezor, and Ledger Nano S, and Ledger Nano X.
Dash (DASH)
Launched in 2014 as XCoin as a fork of Bitcoin, Dash is another popular privacy coin. XCoin rebranded to Dash in 2015. Dash uses an optional PrivateSend feature to provide increased privacy.
Wallets for Dash include The Dash Core Wallet, Edge Wallet, Trezor, and Ledger Nano S, and Ledger Nano X.
Zcash (ZEC)
Zcash is another privacy-focused cryptocurrency based on the Bitcoin codebase. Launched in 2016, Zcash uses cryptography for enhanced privacy. Zcash addresses are either private or transparent. Private addresses are known as z-addresses, and transparent addresses are known as t-addresses.
Wallets for Zcash include ZecWallet Lite, Atomic Wallet, Trezor, Trust Wallet, Ledger Nano S, and Ledger Nano X and Exodus.
As stated at the beginning of the article, this list only scratches the surface, future articles will focus on Grin, Komodo, PIVX, and more.
Wendy’s Whitepaper Disclaimer: Please be advised that I own a diverse portfolio of cryptocurrency assets, and anything written or discussed in connection to cryptocurrencies– regardless of the subject matter’s content– may represent a potential conflict of interest. I wish to remain transparent and impartial to the cryptocurrency community at all times, and therefore, the content of my media are intended FOR GENERAL INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY. Nothing that I write or discuss should be construed, or relied upon, as an investment, financial, legal, regulatory, accounting, tax, or similar advice. Nothing should be interpreted as a solicitation to invest in any cryptocurrency, and nothing herein should be construed as a recommendation to engage in any investment strategy or transaction. Please be advised that is in your own best interests to consult with investment, legal, tax, or similar professionals regarding any specific situations and any prospective transaction decisions.