OMAHA—With the rise of digital currency and the fall of confidence in online security, Bitcoin is at the mercy of consumers in need of persuasion.
The hesitation to embrace Bitcoin makes sense when hackers make headlines out of Target, Home Depot and other retail giants, and personal Bitcoin wallets haven’t fared much better.
Coinbolt creator JP Richardson wants to change that.
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After leading a string of mobile app startups, Richardson, a software developer, took notice of public data breeches. The ever-growing problem of securing digital currency coupled with Richardson’s interest in Bitcoin launched him into the pursuit of a completely secure mobile Bitcoin wallet.
“(In 2013), I had identified that a lot software used to secure your Bitcoins, wallets as they’re aptly called, weren’t very user-friendly and weren’t secure,” Richardson said. “I had to do something about this.”
His experience in the mobile software industry had already given him a few case studies to learn from.
“A lot of Bitcoin wallets like Coinbase and Circle actually hold your Bitcoins for you, but until recently, these Bitcoins weren’t insured,” Richardson said. “If a hacker had breached their servers, they could have taken the Bitcoins and any Coinbase or Circle user would risk losing their funds.”
Just ask users of Inputs.io wallet or Mt Gox, Bitcoin exchange, which lost a combined total of $1.6 million.
According to Richardson, Coinbolt keeps the wallet keys in the hands of the user as opposed to storing them within the software. Think of it as locking the door to your apartment, then keeping the keys in your pocket rather than leaving them with your landlord.
Richardson also wanted Coinbolt to promote the use of Bitcoins and mobile wallets among leery consumers. When a user downloads Coinbolt, sample bitcoins are loaded into the app. Users can interact with Coinbolt’s features and security before they decide to commit.
“No one to my knowledge is using them to help new users test-drive Bitcoin without risk,” he said.
Looking ahead, Richardson predicts the Coinbolt app, now available for Android phones, will evolve as confidence in Bitcoin stabilizes.
“Where Bitcoin is at right now is similar to where the Internet was at in 1993,” Richardson said. “People have heard of it, but they’re not really sure how it can benefit their lives at the moment, and that’s all right.”
