Cryptocurrency users constantly run the risk of sending funds to the wrong recipient or transferring the wrong amount of BTC. Any actions in the Bitcoin network are irreversible, so it is impossible to return a transaction sent to the blockchain. Before withdrawing coins from a BTC wallet, it is important to make sure that the recipient’s address data is error-free. However, it is always possible to cancel a bitcoin transaction in the blockchain without confirmation. Protocols and rules have been developed for this purpose.
Is it possible to cancel a bitcoin transaction on the blockchain
Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer electronic payment system with no intermediaries influencing the flow of funds. Therefore, any actions in the Bitcoin network are irreversible. If a user accidentally sends BTC to the wrong address, they will not be able to contact the recipient and ask for the coins back. Although the Bitcoin network allows you to track where cryptocurrency goes, BTC addresses do not have traditional identifiers to determine the identities of the sender and recipient.
It is a similar situation when a person loses fiat money and doesn’t notice it. The lucky person will find the bills, but will not be able to identify the owner. In both situations, it is unlikely that the owner of the lost money will be able to manage it again.
BTC refund options
Advanced users of cryptocurrency do not always have the opportunity to double-check the details of the transaction and send funds to the wrong recipient. But there are several ways that can help you get your bitcoins back. In this situation, it is important to react quickly to the situation, otherwise you will have to part with your coins.
Request for a refund
As soon as the user of a cryptocurrency exchange initiates the withdrawal of BTC from his account, the system will send the transaction to the blockchain after processing by the support service. The miners will not immediately approve the payment, it will take time. The exchange can not influence the speed of confirmation, as the latter depends on the current network load.
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If the user changes his mind about withdrawing his funds, he can cancel the operation before the platform sends an application for transfer to the blockchain. You need to go to the “Transaction History” section and click the “Cancel” button. If this option is not displayed, it means that the application to withdraw funds from a bitcoin address is already in the blockchain and is being processed by miners.
Finding the wallet owner
Bitcoin is considered to be completely anonymous. However, each cryptocurrency address is traceable. All actions and bitcoin account numbers are recorded on the publicly available Bitcoin blockchain, so the identities of participants in cryptocurrency transactions can be established.
For example, a person shared their bitcoin wallet address on a forum. The author’s nickname may also appear in other social media posts, such as when he or she left personal details in other posts. This makes it easier to find the wallet owner, as it becomes easier to connect the address with personal information in social networks. The e-mail address where the user is registered on a forum or social networks can also be accessed.
Using Blender Wallet
It is known that errors in making the sending of funds are associated with losses. However, the developers of the cryptocurrency wallet Blender Wallet have found a solution to this problem. Using the Replace-by-Fee protocol, users can cancel an unconfirmed BTC transaction in the blockchain and get their funds back.
There are several different RBF protocols, but in general the feature works as follows. For example, a user sends a payment with a fee of 0.00000013 BTC/byte, which hits the Bitcoin blockchain. He waits for execution, but no confirmation occurs. Then the sender speeds up the payment and makes a new transfer from the same bitcoin address with a higher fee. When miners add the transaction to the blockchain, they will get paid for making both transactions. It is possible to cancel a payment that is in the mempool by clicking on the corresponding button in the payment details.
What you need to cancel
Blender Wallet replaces an unconfirmed outgoing transfer with another through the RBF mechanism. If the user inserts another bitcoin account number instead of the receiving address, they will get their funds back minus the blockchain fee.
It is not possible to refuse to make a payment if:
- It was not initiated by the owner of the private key.
- There is at least 1 confirmation.
Canceling a Bitcoin transaction has the risk of failing like any other RBF transaction. The original transfer may have an acknowledgement and the new transfer may fail (if the miner adds the first payment to the block before the second one is online).
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Author: Saifedean Ammous, an expert in cryptocurrency economics.
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