What is Bitcoin Vigil?
Bitcoin Vigil is a service that detects malware using money pots (see below).
How do you send notifications?
We will notify you of which money pot has been compromised via email and optionally SMS.
I have antivirus, do I need Bitcoin Vigil?
Antivirus will never catch everything (there’s even a paper to prove it), new viruses and exploits are created every day. Bitcoin Vigil is the only security solution that can reliably catch many of these new exploits -- as we don’t need to detect new ones -- we just detect the result of having them.
I use two-factor authentication, do I still need Bitcoin Vigil?
Yes! Even if you have two-factor authentication, like a security token, or SMS or an app on your phone ... if your computer is compromised, it's still not safe! This is because you can be undetectably man-in-the-middle'd, and the codes you enter can be used by the attacker for what ever he likes (e.g. transferring your money). If an attacker needs a second round of two-factor authentication, it's easy for him to spoof a "try again" page.
Do viruses avoid Bitcoin Vigil honey pots?
None that we know of! (But we are always on the watch). We however, do not expect it to happen either, as cyber criminals are in competition against each other -- so leaving money on the table, is a pretty risky move on their part.
What do I need to install?
There are no programs you need to install. You only need to save a small file, known as a money pot on your computer
What exactly is a Money Pot?
A Money Pot is a bitcoin wallet file that contains a small amount of bitcoins. These are unencrypted, allowing them to be easily stolen by malware. More formally, they are a: Honey Pot. We constantly monitor these Money Pots for any unauthorized activity.
Do I need to make further modifications to my money pots?
Once you've downloaded a money pot, there is no further action required on your part. We do the rest!
Help, someone stole from my money pot. What do I do now?
Don’t panic. If you get an alert it means that your computer is compromised, you should renew your important passwords (email, paypal, facebook, etc.), clean your computer with a malware removal tool or send it to someone to do it for you, also if you have bitcoin wallets in your computer.
Further questions?
Please drop us a line, we're happy to help.
