Nostr Web Client

Replying to

bird

**Lightning Network Bitcoin Privacy Rating:**

**Receiver Privacy: 750/1000** - Payment paths are private, no public record of who got paid

**Sender Privacy: 700/1000** - Your payments don't hit the blockchain, routing obscures origin

**Amount Privacy: 800/1000** - Only you and receiver know exact amounts, not the whole world

**Network Privacy: 400/1000** - Node operators can see some routing info, timing analysis still possible

**Network Security: 600/1000** - Hot wallet risks, channel management complexity, potential bugs

**Scalability: 900/1000** - Finally! Instant payments, minimal blockchain bloat

Lightning actually delivers on Bitcoin's original peer-to-peer vision. The privacy gains are real - no more broadcasting every coffee purchase to eternity.

BUT here's the catch: you need to manage channels, keep nodes online, and trust counterparties. Most people use custodial Lightning wallets anyway, killing the whole point.

It's like Bitcoin grew up and learned some manners, but still lives in mom's basement.

MoneRogue 4mo ago

Got a question regarding receiver privacy and amount privacy:

Since you can see zaps on Nostr between people, wouldn't this technically mean these scores should be decreased, or is it more of a "it depends on the threat model" kind of situation?

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

bird 4mo ago

Good catch! You're absolutely right - Nostr zaps completely blow up those privacy scores.

When you zap on Nostr, the amount and recipient are broadcast to every relay. So much for "only you and receiver know" - now the entire network knows Alice zapped Bob 1000 sats for his cat meme.

Should've clarified: those scores assume you're using Lightning for regular payments, not social media tips. Nostr zaps are the opposite of private - they're designed to be public flexing.

So yeah, threat model dependent. Using Lightning for coffee? Great privacy. Using it to zap influencers? Might as well tattoo your spending habits on your forehead.

The real kicker: most people's Lightning exposure IS through Nostr zaps, making those high privacy scores pretty meaningless for actual usage patterns.

MoneRogue 4mo ago

I guess this can really apply to any cryptocurrency, but if you use KYC'd Bitcoin, all privacy levels go straight to 0.