Chilling BTC on Legacy Addresses: The Quantum Threat

Just came across this proposal from devs about freezing Bitcoin on legacy addresses if they’re not upgraded to quantum-resistant ones. Does this put collectors of physical Bitcoin collectibles at risk? Sounds super inconvenient if they have to break slabs to get their coins back.

Interesting point about old coins and collectibles needing to be peeled. Will they even pass this? Not sure about that.

Honestly, this whole proposal seems ridiculous. It goes against the very essence of Bitcoin total control for the owners. No one should have the power to freeze anyone's coins. What’s next, locking wallets?

For clarity, when they say "legacy", they’re not just talking about the old scripts. This covers all current scripts vulnerable to quantum attacks. There’s also a Phase C in development where they plan to address UTXOs that can’t be spent after Phase B.

I don’t think the word "freeze" is accurate here. It’s more like giving a window to move funds, maybe like a 15-year grace period. After that, old addresses might become unusable.

The summary of BIP-361 is short. It suggests a 3-year period for migration before they hit Phase B. However, not everything is guaranteed to roll out smoothly.

Better to focus on adding layers of security instead of freezing! Why not a question-answer mechanism to secure access through zero-knowledge proof? It could work if done right.

This proposal feels kinda AI-generated, honestly. The freezing part is sketchy... I get the safety angle but it's setting a bad precedent for censorship.

I think Phase C could allow users who didn’t upgrade to still spend their coins. But how can they guarantee zero-knowledge? The title with “freezing” does sound sketchy though.

BIP 361 mentions that about 34% of bitcoins reveal public keys that are vulnerable to quantum theft by 2026. No way anyone's gonna agree to that.

Exactly! They want to censor Bitcoin and blocking inactive addresses will just snatch coins from people. This affects everyone, including collectibles and cold wallets.

Phases A and B would be soft forks but Phase C might need a hard fork since it requires consensus changes. So no, coins aren’t totally frozen, but still...

I just read up on this, and it feels like we’re finally recognizing the quantum threat. I suggested something like this before, but I know it goes against Bitcoin’s core principles.

Even without this, a point will come where we might have to address it. If these quantum machines are for real and can derive keys, transactions could be risky.

Yeah, I’m with you. Freezing coins opens a dangerous door. Once you start, how do you go back?

True. People should have full control over their coins. If the community wants upgrades against quantum threats, people should move their BTC if they wish.

People seem to forget that once you set a precedent for freezing coins, you can't just rewind it. Same as a crime; once done, it sticks with you.

Exactly! Freedom in Bitcoin is key. Developers seem to want to cater to institutional interests instead of the individual. Hope they make the right choice.

I heard BIP 361 was pushed by Loop. Interesting that even he thinks it might not be great, despite acknowledging the need for a fix. People say we don’t need to worry yet though.

It's still early days for this proposal, so it could change. Quantum computing is still developing. Why the rush to make BTC QC-resistant?