Can we brute force seed phrases?

So, I’ve been thinking... are seed phrases really that secure? Like, I know the BIP39 list has 2048 words. But could someone crack it using a supercomputer?

Honestly, it would take ages. With a 12-word seed phrase, you’re looking at 128 bits of security. Even with tons of computing power, we're talking billions of years.

Right? The last word isn’t the checksum either. In a 12-word phrase, it’s just a few bits at the end. The real security comes from how random the whole thing is.

Exactly! A 12-word seed phrase has enough entropy to be secure. Picking random words won’t help much. You need to generate them correctly.

So, is it really impossible to brute force a 24-word seed phrase? I mean, if you know the words, can you figure out the order?

It’s a whole different level of hard. Knowing the words doesn’t mean you can just rearrange them. It’s like trillions of combinations.

Yeah, you could add a passphrase for extra security. Even if someone gets your seed phrase, they’d still need that passphrase to access your wallet.

I saw this video that breaks it down... man, those numbers are insane! The chances are so slim, it's not even worth trying.

For sure! Brute forcing a seed phrase is just not feasible at all. The entropy is way too high.

But wait, aren't those words just a human-readable way to represent a huge random number? Like, they just make it easier to write down?

Exactly! The words are just a disguise for a massive bitstream. It’s all random behind the scenes.

Whoa, this is making my head spin. I thought the words were just random picks. Now I see the whole encoding thing.

Yeah, you gotta think of it like this... They encode a massive amount of data, not just the words themselves.

So if you think about it, brute forcing is like trying to guess a giant number, not just picking from a list of words.

+1 to that! The list is just a way to make it manageable for us humans.

For those curious, using a passphrase doesn’t encrypt the seed phrase. It adds a layer, but it’s not encryption in the strict sense.

So, what’s the point of using a passphrase then? Just to make it harder for someone to access?

Pretty much! It’s like an extra lock on your door. Even if someone has the key, they still need the code.

I think I’m getting it now. The whole system is designed to be secure, but it’s also user-friendly.

Yeah, and the checksum helps verify if the seed phrase is valid. It’s all connected.