As the cryptocurrency market matures, so too does the technology underpinning it. With new challenges come new opportunities, and one of the most pressing questions on everyone’s mind is: should we clone our favourite coins?
The cloning of digital assets has become an issue of concern in the crypto community. As blockchain technology evolves, the ability to clone digital assets (including but not limited to cryptocurrencies) also expands, raising questions about the security and longevity of such clones.
On the one hand, clones can provide a sense of security and continuity for holders of original assets. And on the other hand, clones can also act as a testing ground for new features or ideas. Here, we will take a look at what cloning a coin entails and discuss some of the benefits and drawbacks of doing so.
The Reality of Cloning Cryptocurrency
With the rise of cryptocurrencies and their increasingly widespread adoption, we need to take a step back and ask ourselves what the reality of cloning cryptocurrency really means. It is possible that this could be an issue in the future.
Cloning cryptocurrency is the process of creating a second, identical, digital currency. Cloned cryptocurrencies are often created to improve on existing cryptocurrencies by adding new features or fixing perceived issues.
Bitcoin was the first cryptocurrency to be cloned in December 2011, and has since yielded more than one hundred copies. Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin are some of the most notable clones that have had success in capturing market share following Bitcoin’s dominance.
However today there are many cases of cloned cryptocurrencies that simply copy-paste the code from Bitcoin or Ethereum and place it on a blockchain with an arbitrary name. These projects are not concerned with creating new features or improving on existing problems, but instead try to scam investors out of their hard-earned money by manipulating them into believing they’re buying something “new”.
How to Clone Cryptocurrency?
The process of cloning cryptocurrency can be done by using a private key to create the amount of cryptocurrencies desired.
Due to the decentralised nature of most cryptocurrencies, it is not possible for any party to edit an individual’s account balance. If a user would like to clone their crypto currencies, they will have to do so through one of the following methods:
- Private Key Cloning: The process involves generating new private keys and corresponding public keys containing identical values as the original keys. This method requires knowledge of the original key’s value which makes it difficult and time consuming. Cloning with just one private key requires knowledge on how you would generate another copy in case there was only one private
- Another way to clone cryptocurrencies is to copy the code.
Cloning cryptocurrency can be a good option if you don’t have your own original ideas and want to create an alternative for a popular cryptocurrency. Cloning cryptocurrency is not a new concept. However, it has only become possible recently with the advent of Bitcoin Cash. Previously, cloning cryptocurrency was done by forking the original blockchain but now there is no need to do that.
Bitcoin Cash provides an easy way to make copies of the blockchain so you can create a new coin which shares its history with Bitcoin Cash. These coins are called ‘BCC’ or ‘Bitcoin Clone’ because they have been cloned from Bitcoin Cash’s rules and software.
The only requirement for making a clone cryptocurrency is to copy the transaction history from one block in one chain onto another block in another chain, and then extend both chains from that point on by mining blocks like normal. This creates an identical altcoin with shared transaction history and zero changes.
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Clone Coins: A Threat To Crypto Exchanges?
In spite of the legitimate and even beneficial applications such as Bitcoin Prime for cloned coins, cryptocurrency exchanges are rightfully worried.
The burgeoning world of cryptocurrency trading has long been fraught with security concerns. The most recent report to emerge is that hackers are cloning coins through a process known as “spoofing”. Through spoofing, hackers can make it appear as if they possess a coin in a wallet when in actuality they don’t have possession of the coin at all. When the scammers initiate an exchange transaction, they can easily dupe unsuspecting traders because they have already transacted with themselves.
Hackers can mimic an individual’s trading activity by initiating various transactions with themselves and then simply waiting for their desired target to enter into a trade agreement – only this time the hacker will stand in the seller’s place.
Moreover, clone tokens can be created easily and without any legal ramifications, which is one of the main reasons that make them a threat to crypto exchanges.
You might be wondering how these clone coins can be a threat, but it is important to remember that all the necessary information about these tokens is publicly available. You do not have to go through lengthy KYC procedures or provide any personal data in order to buy or sell them.
Apart from securing your own exchange from possible attacks, it’s also important for users to take their own precautions against this type of cybercrime. If you are making a transaction with a clone token for some goods or services, make sure that you are only dealing with reputable and well-known companies and using trustworthy bots in order to avoid any potential scams.
Over to You
Cloning bitcoins allow for easier tracking of transactions and can help to prevent fraud. However, cloning bitcoins can also lead to security issues. Ultimately, the decision of whether or not to clone bitcoins is up to the individual user.
