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{{Title|title=
Anonymous Money
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{{#seo:
|description=How to anonymously buy things and receive money. Anonymous BTC. How to anonymize Bitcoins.
|image=Money-515058640.jpg
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[[File:Money-515058640.jpg|thumb|stock image]]
{{intro|
How to anonymously buy things and receive money. Anonymous BTC. How to anonymize Bitcoins.
}}
[[File:BC Logo .png|thumb|[[Bitcoin]]|128px|link=Bitcoin]]
[[File:Electrum-appimage.png|thumb|128px|[[Electrum]] Bitcoin Wallet|alt=Electrum Bitcoin Wallet|link=electrum]]
[[File:Monero-symbol-1280.png|thumb|60px|128px|alt=Monero|link=Monero|[[Monero]] Anonymous Crypto Currency]]
[[File:bank-gray-md.png|thumb|128px|alt=Bank Wire|link=Bank Wire|Bank Transfer]]
= Introduction =
{{mbox
| image = [[File:Ambox_warning_pn.svg.png|40px]]
| text = '''Warning:''' This page is a work in progress, so do not rely on it! Before attempting any of these procedures, always first check if it is legal in your jurisdiction. Read the entire page if anonymous money is of interest.
}}
Readers should understand that anonymous money and payments is a very difficult topic. If outdated or incorrect information is noted, please make direct edits or post in the {{project_name_long}} forums about the issue; improvements are most welcome.
As noted on the [[Documentation|Documentation home page]]:
{{project_name_short}} is a technological means to anonymity, but staying safe necessitates complete behavioral change; it is a complex problem without an easy solution. The more you know, the safer you can be.
This is even truer here. Independent research is always recommended to verify the currency of information on this page or to discover if new developments have changed the situation. With greater knowledge, it is expected a stronger level of anonymity is possible.
= Legality =
It is obviously illegal to use Bitcoin, alternative cryptocurrencies, or other anonymity techniques for the purpose of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money_laundering money laundering]:
Money laundering is the illegal process of concealing the origins of money obtained illegally by passing it through a complex sequence of banking transfers or commercial transactions. The overall scheme of this process returns the "clean" money to the launderer in an obscure and indirect way.
Similarly, participating in or running schemes which others use for money laundering may also be illegal or make the participant vulnerable to accusations of aiding criminals or terrorists. [This point was formerly noted in the [https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Privacy Bitcoin wiki].] Many jurisdictions also place limitations on using Bitcoin (or related) anonymity techniques to hide the source of funds greater than $10,000 - $15,000 because it violates [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structuring anti-structuring laws]. [For instance, transactions of more than $10,000 must be reported in the US, with similar thresholds applying in European and other jurisdictions.]
To comply with relevant laws, many cryptocurrency exchanges require users to undergo Anti-Money Laundering and Know-Your-Customer (AML/KYC) checks. This normally involves personal information such as real name, income, occupation and home residence which is linked to bitcoin addresses and later transactions. A number of jurisdictions are also strengthening anti-money laundering laws to prevent cryptocurrencies being used for crime and corruption related activities. [https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Privacy]
If the reader is in any doubt, {{project_name_short}} is not intended for, nor endorses any anonymous money techniques that violate anti-money laundering or anti-structuring laws, facilitates tax evasion, or aids other illegal activity. Always abide by relevant laws in your local jurisdiction when using cryptocurrencies and other anonymous money methods.
Update: [https://forums.whonix.org/t/coin-mixing-illegal-wallet-developers-arrested-blockchain-crypto-coinjoin/19742 Coin Mixing Illegal - Wallet Developers Arrested - Blockchain - Crypto - CoinJoin]
= Payments Overview =
== Payer Perspective ==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; background-color: #fff"
!'''Method'''
!'''Anonymous Registration Accepted''' ["Accepted" as in possible. This means the account is not closed once anonymous account registration is noticed. There is no known jurisdiction where this type of payment is stated as being legal.]
!'''Tor Use Permitted''' [This also includes "possible" Tor use. Obviously it is not possible to use an internet-based anonymizer for real world activities such as snail mail or meeting in person.]
!'''Processor cannot Freeze Account'''
|- class="odd"
|PayPal
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|- class="even"
|Western Union
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|- class="odd"
| Anonymous credit card, [https://www.giftcards.eu/en/home Giftcard], [https://www.paysafecard.com/en-us/ Paysafecard] etc.
| style="background-color: {{Yellow}}"|Maybe [Cash codes are printed once bought and could contain a code linked to the exact shop location, as well as the date and time of purchase. If that occurs, then it would be a non-anonymous method if they also keep camera recordings and/or the purchase was by non-anonymous means (such as a credit card). In the case of Paysafecard, the country code is already encoded into the cash code. A country code and/or city code already decreases the level of anonymity.] [Anonymous credit cards and gift cards are not anonymous if a real name and/or address must be provided, or if they cannot be purchased with cash.]
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|- class="even"
|Bitcoin
|{{Yes}} [See: [[Bitcoin#Funding_a_Bitcoin_Wallet|Funding a Bitcoin Wallet]].]
|{{Yes}}
|{{Yes}}
|- class="odd"
|Bank transfer
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|- class="even"
|Cash by land mail
|{{No}}
| -
|{{Yes}}
|- class="odd"
|Meeting in person
|{{No}} [Possible identifiers include a person's appearance, clothes, possibly their name, the date and time of the meeting, potentially a car's make/model/license plate number, and so on. If someone can remember your appearance this cannot be considered strong anonymity.]
| -
| style="background-color: {{Yellow}}"|Maybe [For example, customers who eventually make suspicious transactions such as unusually large cash deposits or who have multiple accounts they pay cash into can have their accounts frozen due to the threat of money laundering.]
|}
== Payee Perspective ==
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center; background-color: #fff"
! align="left" | '''Method'''
! align="left" | '''Personal Data Transferred'''
! align="left" | '''Accounting Period'''
! align="left" | '''Comment'''
|- class="odd"
| align="left" | PayPal
| align="left" | Real name, email address
| align="left" | 5-10 minutes
| align="left" | Fees when receiving money from a different country
|- class="even"
| align="left" | Western Union [PayPal does not generally have a minimum payment; see [https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-minimum-amount-of-money-I-can-send-using-PayPal?share=1 here]. However, in Europe payment by Western Union may only be possible for 40 Euro and above. You have to pay the complete transaction fees and it may take up to a week until payment arrives.]
| align="left" | Receiver’s bank name, bank code and bank account number
[https://web.archive.org/web/20200225001508/https://www.westernunion.com/ee/en/faq-send-money-to-bank-account.html]
| align="left" | 1-2 working days [For example see the terms and conditions of use for [https://www.giftcards.eu/en/general_terms#client_identifying_credentials Giftcard] and [https://www.paysafecard.com/fileadmin/content/website_statisch/footer/agb/paysafecard/TC_UK-paysafecard-_10_2013.pdf Paysafecard].] [Please note: Neither third parties are liable for money sent by mail. Do not send registered letters with reply advice.]
| align="left" | Fingerprint, DNA, handwriting, mail center location
| align="left" | 1-7 days
| align="left" | Risk of lost cash or theft
|- class="odd"
| align="left" | Meeting in person
| align="left" | See footnote [Transaction history -- which account number was credited, the size of the payment, the date/time of the transaction, and the recipient of funds -- is available to the payment processor, authorities, tax investigators and a number of other third parties.]
|- class="even"
|Western Union
|{{No}} [[https://web.archive.org/web/20200225001508/https://www.westernunion.com/ee/en/faq-send-money-to-bank-account.html Western Union FAQ]: ]Your Receiver’s bank name. Your Receiver’s Bank Code and bank account number. The amount and currency you wish to send.
|{{No}}
|{{No}} [Bitcoin is discussed in detail [[Bitcoin|here]].]
|{{No}}
|{{No}} [theymos, a bitcointalk.org administrator [https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=241.0 stated]: ]The history of a coin is publicly available. Anyone can see the flow of BitCoins from address to address.
|- class="odd"
|Bank transfer
|{{No}}
|{{No}}
|{{No}} [ATMs register serial numbers of bank notes, where and when notes were dispensed, and to whom. Modern ATMs very often have cameras which continuously record. Credit card numbers are also very often tied to card holder data.]
|{{Yes}} [Refer to the comparison tables for information on the degree of anonymity.] However, strict limits are normally imposed; for example, in Germany the Gesetz über das Kreditwesen (Banking Act) means there is an individual limit of 100 Euros per month. [https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/kredwg/__25i.html]
To locate outlets selling cash codes (Paysafecard, Giftcard and so on) in your area, use the "Find sales outlets" search function on the provider's website. To ensure the smooth and anonymous deployment of cash codes, follow this advice:
* Refrain from checking the cash codes before using them and use the codes immediately. Due to restrictive security settings cash codes are blocked automatically if they are entered from more than one IP address.
* If your cash code gets blocked automatically, then try writing an email to the provider's support section. If a copy of the cash code is provided they may give you a new, unblocked one.
{{JonDos}} The "Using prepaid cards" chapter of the {{project_name_short}} Money wiki page contains content from the [https://web.archive.org/web/20211101204800/https://anonymous-proxy-servers.net/en/help/premium_jondo4.html JonDonym anonymous payment page].
= Cryptocurrencies =
== Bitcoin ==
See [[Bitcoin]] and [[Bisq|Bisq: Decentralized Bitcoin Exchange]].
== Electrum ==
See [[Electrum]].
== Ledger Hardware Wallet ==
See [[Ledger Hardware Wallet]] and [[Hardware_Wallet_Security|Hardware Wallet Security]].
== Monero ==
See [[Monero]].
= See Also =
== Glossary ==
* [https://www.finder.com/cryptocurrency-glossary Crypto A to Z: Cryptocurrency glossary]
== Suggested Reading ==
* [https://arxiv.org/abs/1410.6079 Bitcoin over Tor is not a good idea]
* [https://www.finder.com/cryptocurrency/exchanges Cryptocurrency exchanges]
* [https://www.finder.com/cryptocurrency/wallets Cryptocurrency wallet comparison]
* [https://gitlab.torproject.org/legacy/trac/-/wikis/doc/bitcoin Tor Project: Using Bitcoin over Tor]
== Primary Sources / References ==
* [https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=241.0 Bitcoin Forum: Anonymity]
* [https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Privacy Bitcoin Wiki: Privacy]
* [https://arxiv.org/abs/1107.4524 An Analysis of Anonymity in the Bitcoin System]
* [https://anonymity-in-bitcoin.blogspot.com/2011/07/bitcoin-is-not-anonymous.html Blog: An Analysis of Anonymity in the Bitcoin System]
* [https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=31539.0 Bitcoin Forum: Bitcoin is not anonymous]
== Other Possible Services ==
As this chapter is only a brief introduction to anonymous money, interested readers can investigate other possible options and suggest further edits. For example, the following services have not been explored at the time of writing:
* [https://currencyfair.com/ CurrencyFair]
* [https://www.moneygram.com/intl/ MoneyGram]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20180131181910/http://riamoneytransfer.com/ Ria Money Transfer]
* [https://www.stealthpay.com/ StealthPay]
* [https://www.transfermate.com/ TransferMate]
* [https://wise.com/ TransferWise]
* [https://www.travelex-corporate.com/ Travelex]
= Donations =
After setting up Bitcoin or Monero, please consider making a [[Donate|donation]] to {{project_name_short}} to keep it running for many years to come.
{{Pay_Bitcoin_Specific}}
{{Pay_Monero_Specific}}
= Footnotes =
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{{Footer}}
[[Category:Documentation]]