Silk Road forums
Discussion => Off topic => Topic started by: TheArtist on December 11, 2011, 09:40 pm
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The hardest thing about purchasing anything for me on SR is getting a hold of these damn bitcoins. I've seen quite a few people posting and complaining about there availability and I haven't really found a solution.
What are a couple of fast/safe methods of exchange?
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Fastest way:
Moneypak>bitcoin via a very reputable seller on SR.
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Look into get-bitcoin.com
I've used them a couple times using cash deposits at the bank. Basically you put an purchase order for bitc on their website and then they e-mail you a bank account number to deposit the cash into. Then you go to a Chase or BofA fill out a deposit slip with that bank account number and go to the teller and deposit it (*at my BofA i had to ask the teller for the deposit slip because it was an out of state account). The teller does not ask for any ID or information from you. After you make the deposit you take a picture of the receipt and e-mail to get-bitcoin.com as verification of the deposit. After you e-mail the verification they usually have the bitcoin in my wallet in 2-4 hours (though the site says it can take up to 24). while it's not the most anonymous way to get bitc I think it's one of the easiest and fastest without paying through the nose, btw they charge a 5% service fee.
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I've been using Dwolla->CampBX->instawallet x2 gotta plan though...... get-bitcoin.com has promise to start accepting moneypak after the first of the year. When they were doing that in Aug/Sept it was pretty quick, couple hour turnaround.
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virwox.com is pretty easy (after you get your account set up of course)
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virwox.com is pretty easy (after you get your account set up of course)
Does anyone else know about this place. You can pay with credit card? Is that safe? ???
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This is what I did and you all should do the same:
Found listing for something I wanted on SR for 14BTC (which equals $44.94). Took $60 to walmart and bought a moneypak card at the money center for $5 and put the remaining $55 on the card. "Bought" a listing for MP to BTC from vendor BTC Buddy and sent him the city/state, the total amount on the card, and the MP number (you have to scratch it off the MP card like a lotto ticket). THE SAME DAY my 14BTC was put automatically to my SR account. Set rating at 5 and gave no less than two sentences for feedback.
If you go through BTC Buddy on SR, you'll never have to worry about anonymity or any other crap that all of the trading companies make you go through. I only use BTC Buddy from now on.
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I second get-bitcoin.com. He works with cash, quick and reliable. No paper trail.
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I would steer clear of any SR bitcoin traders in the wake of the SumYunGai fiasco. He wasn't the first, and he won't be the last moneypak thief.
Personally, I find I'm least likely to lose my cash if I get money into my Paxum account (several ways to fund it, personally I like to use moneypak to fund a CC for Paxum deposits) and then transfer the Paxum cash to TradeHill to convert to bitcoins.
The pitfalls here are that I can't recall which but either Paxum, TradeHill, or both may ask for a bit too much personal info for your tastes. It also takes a bit longer than handing over a moneypak on faith to a SR vendor, assuming they do pay you BTCs. My own philosophy is that as buying bitcoins is legal, I'm fine with my actual self acquiring them with a paper trail. By the time any illicit substance has been purchased, those bitcoins have tumbled a bit in the washer, you know?
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SugarMama is a very reputable moneypack-->BTC vendor
-RI
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Virwox is super easy and fast, but it's not ideal, as they have a high rate
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SugarMama is a very reputable moneypack-->BTC vendor
-RI
Word!
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SugarMama is a very reputable moneypack-->BTC vendor
-RI
Word!
Awwwwwwwww, love you guys, you're so sweet!
http://alltheragefaces.com/img/faces/png/happy-cuteness-overload.png
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I've been saying to myself for the last 3 weeks on payday (Friday) "This is the time you start your bitcoin purchasing, and you'll be lifted to shit when the package arrives next week." but then I always give up when I think about going through it all and just hop down the street and grab something satisfying but not something I want because of ease. Just started reading the Moneypack stuff today and thank god everything is giving props to Sugar Mama, I'm really thinking this is the method for me.
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A really lazy way to do this if you've got a CC/Paypal is to go to bitcointalk otc irc and just buy from one of the day traders there.
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SugarMama is a very reputable moneypack-->BTC vendor
-RI
SumYunGai was also "very reputable" before they fucked the community over. Past success is no guarantee of future success. Most people will probably get lucky, but I pity those who happen to place orders before a vendor is about to suddenly depart SR. When these BTC traders leave SR or stop trading, what is stopping them from taking their last round cash with them and leaving everyone out in the cold?
I'm not saying SugarMama will end up fucking you all over, I'm just reminding you all that the same praise being tossed SugarMama's way was being tossed SYG's way up to the very day he was stealing thousands of dollars.
Let us never forget that the very nature of SR seems to draw more of the unscrupulous vendors than a regular marketplace would. A vendor knows if it comes down to it they can make off with a few grand that will never be reported to authorities, and they won't have to bother with any goons breaking down their doors to collect the ill-gotten funds.
Scammers can only exist so long as there are marks to be scammed. If we can help each other become less susceptible to scams, especially early finalizing and out of escrow purchases like monkeypak trading, we can dissuade a few of the scammers.
We can start by educating people about the methods of acquiring BTCs other than moneypak vendors. It can be very overwhelming to a new buyer, so they usually stick with the faster, easier, and less safe option of trading a moneypak. Those unwilling to learn or wait for the time it takes to acquire BTCs safely will have to be the sacrificial lambs used to sate the scammers' appetite.
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I understand what you're getting at Sal, and in a perfect world no one would scam. But I'm looking at it this way (Keep in mind I only make small purchases.), I take a risk with my hobby no matter what, I'm trying to lessen the risk as much as possible and doing it at all this way already decreases it a good amount. I've been ripped off on the street many times over and probably will be again, it's the nature of the beast. I don't want it to happen, but it does and there is no escrow/refunds/reships or recourse for that either.
Is the only real problem with the Moneypack > Bitcoin option the seller trust? Are the coins more traceable that way? Even though I'm impatient I'm still trying to be as healthy paranoid as I can be about all this.
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Is the only real problem with the Moneypack > Bitcoin option the seller trust? Are the coins more traceable that way? Even though I'm impatient I'm still trying to be as healthy paranoid as I can be about all this.
While they CAN be tracked, I'm not sure they would ever actually bother to track it unless in a significant investigation. Even if it was tracked, I don't think there is anything illegal about trading your cash for a virtual currency. However, it DOES clearly state on the back of the moneypak itself (and this is verbatim as I have a used moneypak in front of me right now):
"USE OF THIS PRODUCT IS TRACKED. Verification of your identity may be required. Transaction information and store surveillance images are used to help law enforcement solve crimes and make arrests."
That quote lies directly under the warning to treat your moneypak like cash and never give it to a "private party," only "participating partners." I assume a participating partner is something like a Wal-Mart prepaid debit card or the prepaid Rush card. It says they have a list of the partners online. But I digress.
Seller trust is not the only real problem with these moneypak->BTC transactions, but it is the main issue. The potential tracing of moneypak is not an issue when it is used to first buy the BTCs with which to eventually make illegal transactions. The tracking becomes an issue when you are directly trading moneypak for illicit substances, a practice most vendors here won't engage in anyway.
If you feel you are willing to accept the possibility of losing all of the money you are dealing with, by all means feel free to go for the faster and easier option of using a bitcoin trader on SR. Just remember that your money can very well disappear without any possible recourse.
I personally HAVE used SR BTC traders in the past, including SumYunGai when he was legit oddly enough. If I were to still use BTC vendors I'd likely go through SugarMama, but I'd still be anxious as hell from the second I send the moneypak code to the second I receive BTCs. The problem lies more with the nature of the moneypak beast than it does with the vendors. Having to deal exclusively out of escrow does not help matters at all.
At the end of the day, we are all (I hope we are) adults capable of making responsible decisions on our own behalf. So long as you are mature enough to accept the potential consequences of a risky action, there is no harm in taking a risk here or there. We've all taken a few healthy risks even congregating in this little sector of the web.
My advice is to never let your faith in even a personally trusted vendor lead you into dealing with transactions that are larger than the amount of money you are comfortable losing. Just because your $100-$300 orders went well doesn't mean you won't lose $1,000-$3,000 if you go that big. If you must spend large amounts of money, break them up into batches. Better to lose small amounts at a time than the whole kit and caboodle in one go.
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I'm with you on that . I'm new here to and this bitcoin thing is a pain in the ass.
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I just made my first purchase on SR and went the way of dwolla -> bit coin trader -> instawallet washing -> SR account and it took several days for me to be able to make a purchase, the vendor even sold out when I finally got my funds to SR! but luckily re-upped the next day. Even though this method probably takes the longest, it is probably the most secure and after you tumbled your coins through a few wallets, i think probably harder to trace back to you personally. It is definately a pain but a sure way to get your Bitcoins, though if you can't wait I'm sure a reputable trader like Sugar Mama would be the way to go!
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I just saw that Dwolla is now offering an "instant" feature. Apparently, it will allow you to fund your account instantly (hence the name). I don't know anything more about it, but it may be worth looking into...
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I just found out about this too. There is a $3 a month fee to use the instant funding feature as well as a $5 late fee.
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Thanks guys I am going to look into Dwolla. Now I need to find a reliable source....any suggestions? someone in US preferably.
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Option A) Involves Time
Setup a DWOLLA account, Get verified(very simple takes a few hours once stuff is sent) and then do a transfer from ur bank account into dwolla (dwolla.com). Takes a few days before it post's. Transfer them into MTGOX(mtgox.com) Buy ur bitcoins, Then send them to SR account address Total Time usually 4 days.
Be careful with something like this. Bitcoins can be completely traced back along every transaction, so if the coins are not unlinked from your personal identity it is not impossible to connect you to your purchases here.
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#bitcoin-otc. Those guys are more into the financial aspects of BTC and won't even ask you what you want them for.
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I buy Linden from the lindex then with that trade for bitcoins using therocktrading.com ATM , and I wait until a good price so I dont end up paying alot ontop of fees. Or you can accept an offer, the other day i ended up paying 30$ for 7,32 coins and then $25 for 6,3 coins. It is really interesting how this currency works... I wish it was easier too but this seems easiest to me because I can use my credit card :P
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Hell Yes, there has to be an easier way. I have'nt figured it out yet and have been scammed out of several hundred dollars trying to use moneypaks. So I don't know what else to do but i'm getting close to saying fuck SR. It has'nt helped me anyway. It has only shortened my pockets. There is no honor among thieves here....Someone Help!!!!
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Hi,
I am also new to this and have done quite some research in the last weeks.
Most ways are quite cumbersome, CC is almost impossible.
The easiest and fastest way I have found was to buy paysafecards (the European MP equivalent) or ukash
and exchange it with AmsterdamShop, took me maybe 30 minutes for 500 EUR. I can recommend him unconditionally,
bought other stuff from him already, really great guy, very fast, very nice!
ukash can only be bought physically afaik, Paysafecard can in some countries (at least the one I live in) be bought with
your bank account online.
Another, but really tedious way I have already succesfully tried is virwox->Linden(SecondLife)->RockTrading(also in SL)->BTC
But of course you have to pay a fee for each step, in the end it is (probably) more expensive and takes a lot of time and effort.
If you have a verified paypal account ebay might also be worth looking into, most sell only caucasious (physical) coins, but some also sell the usual BTCs , but with a really hefty surcharge, which I understand, due to the chargeback-risk.
Or you might try https://www.velaexchange.com/, you need to verify your account with a copy of your creditcard.
interbitcoins.com might also be a choice if you are in the US, deposit by bank account.
dxexchange.com has also worked for me, but do *not* try to use a creditcard not yours more than once, they seem to have some very good verification system.
This is also via SecondLife.
If you have EUR bills I have one more:
http://juol5kvxyb6xcxlb.onion/imlogin.php
they give you BTCs for cash, seem to have a good reputation, but I have never tried that.
Last: If you have some postal address were you can receive packages (at least once) that cannot be tracked to you, I could have some physical BTCs (which can of course be used online) sent to you for free, you pay me back in BTC with 50% of the BTCs received.
cheers,
Stephe
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Hi,
I am also new to this and have done quite some research in the last weeks.
Most ways are quite cumbersome, CC is almost impossible.
The easiest and fastest way I have found was to buy paysafecards (the European MP equivalent) or ukash
and exchange it with AmsterdamShop, took me maybe 30 minutes for 500 EUR. I can recommend him unconditionally,
bought other stuff from him already, really great guy, very fast, very nice!
ukash can only be bought physically afaik, Paysafecard can in some countries (at least the one I live in) be bought with
your bank account online.
Another, but really tedious way I have already succesfully tried is virwox->Linden(SecondLife)->RockTrading(also in SL)->BTC
But of course you have to pay a fee for each step, in the end it is (probably) more expensive and takes a lot of time and effort.
If you have a verified paypal account ebay might also be worth looking into, most sell only caucasious (physical) coins, but some also sell the usual BTCs , but with a really hefty surcharge, which I understand, due to the chargeback-risk.
Or you might try https://www.velaexchange.com/, you need to verify your account with a copy of your creditcard.
interbitcoins.com might also be a choice if you are in the US, deposit by bank account.
dxexchange.com has also worked for me, but do *not* try to use a creditcard not yours more than once, they seem to have some very good verification system.
This is also via SecondLife.
If you have EUR bills I have one more:
http://juol5kvxyb6xcxlb.onion/imlogin.php
they give you BTCs for cash, seem to have a good reputation, but I have never tried that.
Last: If you have some postal address were you can receive packages (at least once) that cannot be tracked to you, I could have some physical BTCs (which can of course be used online) sent to you for free, you pay me back in BTC with 50% of the BTCs received.
cheers,
Stephe
more on real btc
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Hi,
I am not sure what you mean by "real", if you mean the physical coins, it is described here:
https://www.casascius.com/
Basically, you get a coin (or bar) with some fancy holograms and a code, that code represents a digital bitcoin, you
can convert them into usable BTC via mtgox or other exchange services.
The idea is: You provide me with some postal address that you can access without beeing noticed, but that is not
directly traceable to you. I will use a creditcard (a stolen one) to buy the coins and have them sent to that address.
cheers,
Stephe
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All of you guys have been a treasure of help especially Sal.....Thanks guys