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To use escrow on Havana, you'll need to retrieve and enter a key value in the "multisig public key" space on your account settings page
The multisig public key is something you already have if you have a bitcoin wallet. Every bitcoin address.includes a public/private key pair that's usually kept hidden by your wallet in typical day to day use.
It's easy to retrieve a public key from your wallet using common wallet apps. Even if you don't currently use one of these wallets you can easily generate a new bitcoin address and retrieve the public key.The following links include detailed instructions for getting a bitcoin public key using Electrum wallet, Bitcoin-QT or Bitsigner, the Havana market companion multisig helper app.
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You may have heard that multisig escrow is much safer than traditional escrow that you see at most markets.And a carefully designed, well implemented multisig escrow system is extremely safe for buyer and vendor.The holy grail of online transactions is a "trustless" system, where you don't have to trust the market or the vendor and uou can still be safe from the kinds of thefts and scams that are epidemic on darknet markets.
How can a user tell if a multisig market is as safe as it claims to be? Here are some warning flags to watch out for in multisig markets. These are indications of security breaches that thieves or dishonest market admins could use to steal buyer or vendor funds. Deposit addresses beginnng with a "1". As a buyer do you send funds to a bitcoin address beginning with the number 1 at any step in the process? If you do, you are sending funds to a standard bitcoin address controlled by the market. Many markets do this as a convenient way to assure they get their commmission in the beginning of the process. If the market waits for the vendor to accept the order before forwarding the funds to the multisig addrees, the risk is even greater. Avoid this situation. In a well designed multisig system, the buyer should be able to deposit escrow funds directly to a multisignatue address from their personal wallet. Multisignature addresses always begin with the number "3." Keys generated by the market or through online.app.If your public/private key pair that's used for the multisig process is generated for you by the market app while you are online,then the market could have your private key.In other words the market has the two of three keys needed to withdraw the escrow funds and send them to whatever address they want to. Don't be fooled by arguments about automatic encryption and the market has no ability to see your keys. If the keys are generated buy the market while you are online, there is no way to know that the market doesn't have your private key. How quickly the market moves your coins to the multisignature address is quick way to make sure they get their commiisionn before they forward the rest of the funds to a multisignature escrow address. Clearly there is risk here. Market controlled wallets often are pooled wallets with the funds of many buyers in one address. They are an attractive target for hackers and rogue admins. ] take advantage of. holes in the systems..Just because a market has one or more of these characteristics doesn't mean they are dishonest and are stealing from you, But the potential for losses and thefts are definitely there. ware dishoonthat a multisig escrow system is not as safe as it claims to be: Aren't all multisig markets pretty much the same? How could one be safer than the other if they use the same technology. Features to check for in mu Things to watch out for If a market's online system creates a publicThe way multisig escrow If you are skeptical about how much safer multisig escrow is or you just want to learn more, check out this FAQ.
Getting the key is a simple one-time procedure. You won't typically ever need to change the setting after that unless you lose your bitcoin wallet associated with that key.
Taking two minutes to complete this important step is they only thing you need to do to get all of the safety and security advantages of multisig escrow. We've put a lot of effort into designing a multisig implementation that is simple for buyers to use without compromising security. In fact, once you've completed this step we doubt you'll notice any difference between buying on Havana and buying on other markets. Except the peace of mind and confidence you'll have knowing you're protected by rock solid multisig escrow tecnnology. For more about why multisig escrow is so much safer, see this FAQ. at are much more vulnerable tp hacks, thefts and exit scams.
If you are skeptical about how much safer multisig escrow is or you just want to learn more, check out this FAQ. -
Every regular bitcoin address in your wallet has an associated private.public key-pair associated with that address. Most people aren't even aware that this keypair and the relationship between the two keys is the cryptographic underpinning of the entire bitcoin network and currency.
The public key from your wallet becomes a multisig public key when the buyer, vendor and market/mediator's keys are used to calculate a multisig address. The three key arrangement, when combined with safe handling of the private keys by each party to the transaction, is highly secure. The bitcoin cryptogpraphic algorithm that underlies the technology has never been hacked or brute-forced. You should keep your private key private and backed up in case your signature is needed for a refund transaction. In unsual circumstances such as when a vendor becomes unavailable, you will need your private key to retrieve your funds.