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Key pointsBitcoin is a digital currency known as a cryptocurrencyThe peer-to-peer technology underpinning it's known as the blockchain a public ledger of transactionsBitcoins can be stored in a digital wallet and used to Purchase other currencies or real world goods

Where once a single bitcoin was worth a few cents it's now worth about $9,200 per coin (November 2017), creating millionaires in the process.There have been many reported instances where individuals mined thousands of comparatively worthless bitcoins as a hobby years ago, only to now realise they are rich.One IT worker even threw out a hard disk containing 7,500 bitcoins.

All this is done with no central authority or bank.Who generated itBitcoin and the blockchain technology was created by someone under the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto and published as a working beta in 2009. Satoshi's true identity remains a mystery as he disappeared from the scene in 2010 after seemingly handing over the reins into Gavin Andresen, the chief scientist in the Bitcoin Foundation.Over the years numerous individuals have promised to be Satoshi, including Australian computer scientist Craig Wright.

Once the limit is reached, no longer bitcoins can be made.However, a single bitcoin can be subdivided as far down as the eighth decimal place (0.00000001BTC) to purchase smaller goods using just a fraction of these coin.How would you shop or send bitcoinYou can shop and send bitcoins via an encrypted digital wallet, which can be run as a program on your computer.The wallet works with two keys that a private key and a public key which look to be a seemingly random string of numbers and letters.The private key is kept secret by you and acts as a password that unlocks the wallet and allows you to send any bitcoins connected with that.

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If the website gets hacked or someone gets your login details that they could access and drain your funds from the exchange.There is no way for a transaction to be revoked or revoked if a burglar sends your bitcoins to their wallet.After buying your coins you should transfer them into a secure digital pocket made by you and not hosted online.You can even write down the pocket's personal key on a sheet of paper (that is known as a newspaper wallet) and stick it in a safe.If you don't store the private key on your computer or online then recipients can never break in and get your funds.

Bitcoin means different things to different individuals. For many, it's a future of freely moving currency untied to any central bank. To others, it is a purely electronic entity of questionable worth and dubious origin. But what is Bitcoin, in the most elementary senseIn most casual conversations, you can eliminate knowing that bitcoin is, essentially, a digital currency.

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In reality, it is two considerably more complicated things.Bitcoin has been with us since 2009, when a person (or group) under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto introduced a platform (Bitcoin, uppercase) that hosts an electronic currency (bitcoin, lowercase). Bitcoin the stage is built on the concept of proof of work information which is expensive and time-intensive to produce but can be readily verified.

To mine a bitcoin, a computer must finish a complicated algorithm, essentially going through the job of an extensive calculation in exchange for a few newly minted currency. That bit of digital currency is worth whatever the market determines through distribution and demand.Transactions are connected to some users Bitcoin speech, which can be saved on its own general ledger, called the blockchain.

This comparative anonymity makes the platform appealing for things like incognito purchases within the internet.A key advice component of Bitcoins blockchain is the simple fact that it is an open, distributed ledger. Throughout the distributed nature of this ledger, the transactions on the blockchain are confirmed from the consensus of every member, offering security and trust without a third-party overseer.One of the most important things to bear in mind when thinking about exactly what Bitcoin (or even bitcoin) is: there is no single answer.