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I've currently set up Whonix VMs using Virtual Box on OS X 10.11.6. Before that I was using a Bitcoin-qt with Tor Browser Bundle.

Now I'm having question what is a best way to use bitcoin+tor setup in my case?

Could it be dangerous for my anonymity to run TorBB+Bitcoin-QT setup on host(OSX) machine while running Whonix VM setup at the same time?

I guess the best way is to transfer somehow my bitcoins to Whonix Workstation, and set up there something like a thin wallet (electrum or multibit)? Or could I just leave the TorBB+Bitcoin scheme on my OSX, running it just for Bitcoin, while using Whonix for all other anonymous stuff (like browsing etc.)?

Hey, community, how would you address this situation?

Thank you very much!

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Good day,

Running the Tor Browser Bundle, or any browser for that matter parallel to Whonix is not recommend due to the fact that confusing which browser runs on Whonix and which on the host is inevitable. Further information to this may be found here: https://www.whonix.org/wiki/DoNot#Do_not_use_clearnet_and_Tor_at_the_same_time.

Adding to that I'd recommend transfering your Bitcoins onto your Whonix-Workstation, like you already mentioned. Information on this may be found here: https://www.whonix.org/wiki/Money#Bitcoin

Have a nice day,

Ego

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  • Really? That seems like a bad idea. If you have been using the bitcoin wallet outside of Tor already you're likely already going to have issues with anonymity. Importing it into Whonix then trying to use it non-anonymously after the fact will only contaminate the Whonix desktop, potentially linking it to other identities if the bitcoin client is not properly configured for circuit isolation. Importing non-anonymous content into a supposedly anonymous system just contaminates the anonymous system. A fresh start would be a better recommendation.
    – cacahuatl
    Oct 29, 2016 at 1:50
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    You are obviously correct in saying that a fresh start would be the best option in this case. I should have expressed myself more precisely here, adding that there is no real way to anonymize Bitcoins, once they've been used on an insecure host. That being said, I was answering the question as asked by the OP, which considered leaving his Bitcoins on the host in either way and specifically stated that he/she would use "Whonix for all other anonymous stuff". In that case, putting them on a Workstation is, thanks to Stream Isolation, not less, nor more anonymous than running it via Tor on host.
    – Ego
    Dec 24, 2016 at 3:37
  • Yes, I'm not a Whonix or Bitcoin user so I don't know the details but as I understand it they'd have been tainted by use outside of an "anonymous" context, and laundering is a non-trivial task. So moving the coins to an anonymous context won't anonymise the coins but it wouldn't be less anonymous.
    – cacahuatl
    Dec 24, 2016 at 4:06

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