Ledger, maker of the Nano S and Nano X hardware wallets, pushed a software update this week that lets users control which cryptocurrency addresses they use for transactions. The feature, Coin Control,
Ledger, maker of the Nano S and Nano X hardware wallets, pushed a software update this week that lets users control which cryptocurrency addresses they use for transactions. The feature, Coin Control, counters a specific privacy threat: dusting attacks, where someone sends small Bitcoin amounts to a target's wallet to track their movements.
The update to Ledger Live, version 2.11.1 released September 15, serves two purposes. First, users can select which addresses to spend from instead of the default oldest-address-first approach. Second, they can avoid spending dust, the tiny Bitcoin fragments that accumulate in a wallet and are worth less than the transaction fees to move them. These fragments sit as unspent transaction outputs, or UTXOs, and blockchain observers can track a Bitcoin holder through them.
Litecoin users faced a major dusting attack in August 2019, when attackers sent them worthless coins to establish a tracking method. Coin Control prevents this by letting users skip spending those UTXOs, making it impossible for attackers to follow the chain.
Ledger highlighted another benefit. By selecting UTXOs with higher values, users reduce their transaction byte size and pay lower network fees. The feature also lets users assign specific addresses to certain types of payments.
"As such, they cannot track any movements," Ledger said. "In short: it can be a game-changer when it comes to your privacy."
The software update brings the first real option for granular control over Bitcoin transactions to Ledger's user base, which had no control over which addresses their wallet would spend from.
