Run your own node.

While miners secure the network by expending energy, full nodes enforce Bitcoin’s rules. A node independently verifies all transactions and blocks, rejecting anything invalid.

If a miner attempts to include fraudulent transactions, nodes will not accept the block. This balance ensures miners cannot change Bitcoin’s rules, as their work is always subject to verification by the wider network.

Nodes place ultimate authority in the hands of users, keeping Bitcoin decentralized and censorship-resistant.

Your node, and the rules it enforces, are how you tell the network “this is what Bitcoin is to me”