Bitcoin Audible

In this episode, Steve, Jeff, and I walk through the catastrophic Coldcard entropy failure, how a trusted hardware wallet ended up generating weak keys, and how attackers are now brute-forcing Bitcoin wallets in minutes.

We dig into AI’s role in widening the attack surface, the dangers of source-available over true open source, and our own arrogance around hardware security. I share practical steps to get your coins off compromised devices, why multi-sig saved me this time, and how we can turn this gut punch into genuine anti-fragility for Bitcoin self-custody.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Introduction

(00:11:36) - Reacting to the Coldcard exploit

(00:15:00) - FOSS vs. source-available software

(00:22:05) - Hardware fallback flaws and testing

(00:35:46) - Verifying dice roll entropy

(00:42:45) - Red teaming Bitcoin security with AI

(00:54:13) - Physical dice rolling for keys

(01:10:11) - Jack Mallers, Strike, and 21

(01:31:50) - Corporate influence and core dev funding

(01:45:43) - AI and vulnerability discovery

(01:49:34) - Anti-fragile security and multi-sig

Guest Links

Steve Simple Nostr (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3s6a8yn8)

Steve Simple on X (Link: https://x.com/stevesimple)

Jeff Swann Nostr (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3sjc3bcp)

Jeff Swann on X (Link: https://x.com/agoristview)

Jeff Swann's petition (Link: https://www.change.org/p/help-us-home)

Affiliate Links

Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/)

Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

This is an emergency episode to warn everyone of the catastrophic Coldcard entropy bug that’s letting attackers regenerate users’ keys and drain wallets without device access.

I walk through concrete, step‑by‑step instructions to move your coins to safety (including using Sparrow, Nunchuck, and even exchanges as a last resort), who’s most at risk across MK3, MK4, MK5, and Q devices, and what this means for hardware wallets, AI‑driven security research, and multi‑sig going forward.

This is the worst hit to self custody in Bitcoin's history. All we can do is act as quickly as possible. If you have a coldcard in your setup, you need to move to safe keys or cycle your multisig, don't wait, don't assume you have time, sit down and get it done. Do it carefully and don't skip steps.

Here are a few of the quickest paths to safety and how to think about this going forward. To everyone who got hit by this, I cannot be more sorry.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Coldcard bug red alert

(00:02:07) - MK3 absolute worst case

(00:03:16) - Other wallets who’s safe

(00:04:33) - Links confirmation panic check

(00:05:18) - Dice entropy and urgency

(00:05:56) - MK4 MK5 Q risk

(00:06:57) - Fastest escape route

(00:08:59) - Recovering with just seed

(00:09:43) - When to use exchange

(00:11:03) - Multisig exposure lessons

(00:16:35) - Personal note

Affiliate Links

Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/guy/)

Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

References from the episode\

Coinkite Security Advisory: https://blog.coinkite.com/coldcard-mk3-seed-generation-warning/\

Predictable RNG Fallback and 32-Bit Reseed in COLDCARD Firmware (Block): https://engineering.block.xyz/blog/predictable-rng-fallback-and-32-bit-reseed-in-coldcard-firmware
Host Links
⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)
⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)
Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)
Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)
Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)
Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)
⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)
The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

There is a massive miscommunication tearing Bitcoiners apart right now. Instead of arguing over specific code like BIP 110, I want to ask a much harder question in this solo take: Is it actually censorship to address spam?

I'll explain why prioritizing financial transactions over JPEGs isn't authoritarianism, and why claiming it is destroys our ability to protect the network. We built a protocol for decentralized money, not unlimited file storage. Let's talk about what real censorship actually means.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - "Censorship" and Spam

(00:01:41) - The analogy

(00:02:52) - Free speech and limits

(00:04:54) - The trick

(00:06:30) - Size limits vs censorship

(00:08:06) - What censorship really is

(00:10:48) - The Motte and Bailey argument

(00:14:45) - Bitcoin is for money

(00:16:20) - Is limiting spam censorship?

Affiliate Links

Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/guy/)

Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

References from the episode

Coronavirus: Staying safe and informed on Twitter (12 January 2021): https://tinyurl.com/2cb4fxej

X - Updating our approach to misleading information (11 May 2020): https://tinyurl.com/285vdpbe

Block 960074 (Mempool.space): https://tinyurl.com/29rr7lwg

Bitcoin Whitepaper: https://tinyurl.com/kkxbyss

Giacomo Zucco X post: https://tinyurl.com/2yhf55q6

"Your savings represent hours you worked, risks you accepted, businesses you built, time spent away from people you love, and consumption you postponed for the sake of the future. When the monetary system allows others to dilute those savings without your consent, it weakens your claim on that future. Bitcoin offers a peaceful alternative, giving every individual access to property that cannot be created without limit, altered for political convenience, or administered according to a different set of rules for the powerful."

"Two hundred and fifty years ago, Americans declared that they would no longer live as subjects. […] the best way to honor that inheritance is not merely to look backward and celebrate what they accomplished. It is to identify the unfinished work of freedom in our own time and do our part to advance it."

~ Cory Klippsten

Today I’m reading Cory Klippsten’s latest piece, The Battle for Monetary Independence. Cory uses his grandfather’s World War II journal to show that real historical changes aren't won through sudden heroic events, but built on quiet, unglamorous, day-to-day work.

Bull markets get the hype while bear markets do the actual heavy lifting. I share my thoughts on what true monetary freedom looks like and the few things that matter far more than waiting for Wall Street's permission.

Check out the original article: The Battle for Monetary Independence by Cory Klippsten (Link: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/essay/the-battle-for-monetary-independence/)

Host Links

⁠⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

Check out our awesome partners!

Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/guy)

Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

"People have only as much liberty as they have the intelligence to want and the courage to take."

~ Emma Goldman

I walk through the global push for Central Bank Digital Currencies, why voluntary rollouts have mostly flopped, and what governments really gain from programmable, fully surveilled money.

I dig into the upcoming digital euro, the U.S. Senate’s move against a federal CBDC, and the rise of OpenUSD as an open stablecoin standard.

Ultimately I argue that while CBDCs are about control, the infrastructure they create may unintentionally supercharge a global Bitcoin exit ramp. I break down why this surveillance trap might give us our ultimate exit.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - CBDCs are inevitable

(00:01:19) - Sales pitch vs reality

(00:01:54) - The quiet part aloud

(00:02:30) - Programmable control layer

(00:03:26) - The inclusion myth

(00:06:04) - Global pilots are flopping

(00:08:53) - CBDCs and privacy

(00:10:16) - OpenUSD and surveillance

(00:11:21) - Stablecoins as a backdoor

(00:12:56) - Bitcoin literacy barrier

(00:13:21) - CBDCs will backfire

Affiliate Links

Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/guy/)

Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

References from the episode

CoinDesk.com: https://tinyurl.com/2a3zkokc

ICMAgroup.org: https://tinyurl.com/2cyxvsnc

Congress.gov: https://tinyurl.com/24qxpmm8

TheStreet.com: https://tinyurl.com/2ac54w2a

CoinDesk.com: https://tinyurl.com/2dm2kajl

Wiley.com: https://tinyurl.com/27ydh5q6

CentralBanking.com: https://tinyurl.com/2amemcsv

Reuters.com: https://tinyurl.com/yrpt6cug

CBDC Tracker: https://tinyurl.com/2xn6qxyj

CBDC Tracker: https://tinyurl.com/2dmtppbe

HRF.org: https://tinyurl.com/27ojcx72

Cato.org: https://tinyurl.com/23nltch2

EFF.org: https://tinyurl.com/2bx3dyhu

X.com: https://tinyurl.com/22yq2ftx

JoinOpenStandard.com: https://tinyurl.com/2399fw43

TFTC.io: https://tinyurl.com/28n9b2e8

CoinDesk.com: https://tinyurl.com/25mnrnjk

Europa.eu: https://tinyurl.com/24xvdqan