Keys and Bitcoin Addresses: Generating a Public Key | Saylor Academy (2024)

FAQs

How to generate a public key in Bitcoin? ›

In technical terms, you multiply a starting point (generator point) on the secp256k1 elliptic curve by the private key (a random number), and this results in a new set of x and y coordinates, which is the public key.

It is important to note that a public key is not the same as a wallet address, as some people may believe. A public key is part of the wallet address and is used to facilitate transactions, while a wallet address is used to identify a destination for cryptocurrency transactions.

The public key is generated from the private key using the Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm. You get a public address for your account by taking the last 20 bytes of the Keccak-256 hash of the public key and adding 0x to the beginning.

Hence, a public address is the shortened version of the public key. As such, a public address can be freely shared with other people and they can send crypto to that address. A wallet is a virtual keychain that allows you to securely store, manage, and transfer your cryptocurrencies.

To generate an SSH private/public key pair for your use, you can use the ssh-keygen command-line utility. You can run the ssh-keygen command from the command line to generate an SSH private/public key pair. If you are using Windows, by default you may not have access to the ssh-keygen command.

Cryptocurrency private keys are randomly generated numbers that can be one of 2²⁵⁶ possibilities. Generally, they are 256 digits long, but for simplicity, private keys are usually expressed in hexadecimal form. While hashing a public address from a private key is trivial, the reverse is almost impossible.

Bitcoin wallet addresses have between 26 and 35 characters and consist of both letters and numbers. They start with either "1," "3," or "bc1." Here's an example of a Bitcoin address: 1Lbcfr7sAHTD9CgdQo3HTMTkV8LK4ZnX71. Ethereum addresses are 42-character hexadecimal addresses.

Tip: The bitcoin private key is just a number. You can pick your private keys randomly using just a coin, pencil, and paper: toss a coin 256 times and you have the binary digits of a random private key you can use in a bitcoin wallet. The public key can then be generated from the private key.

An address of 34 characters is generated by applying the SHA256 hashing algorithm on the pubic key, then computing the RIPEMD160 hash of the result. A = RIPEMD160(SHA256(P)), where P is the public key, and A is the Bitcoin address.

Public key cryptography is a method of encrypting or signing data with two different keys and making one of the keys, the public key, available for anyone to use. The other key is known as the private key. Data encrypted with the public key can only be decrypted with the private key.

How can I find public key? ›

To search for public keys on the key server, open GPG Keychain, press ⌘F (or click the Spotlight icon to Lookup Key ). Type the email address for which you are looking for a public key and click Search . Optionally we recommend to verify public keys. This KB-article explains how to verify and sign a key.

A bitcoin address is not the same as a public key. Bitcoin addresses are derived from a public key using a one-way function.

Example: Public keys of every user are present in the Public key Register. If B wants to send a confidential message to C, then B encrypt the message using C Public key. When C receives the message from B then C can decrypt it using its own Private key.

The public key may be known by anyone and, depending on the algorithm, may be used to 1. Verify a digital signature that is signed by the corresponding private key, 2. Encrypt data that can be decrypted by the corresponding private key, or 3. Compute a shared secret during a key-agreement process.

First open the “Developer Command Prompt for Visual Studio” with Administrator privileges. We will use the “Microsoft . NET Framework Strong Name Utility” to get the necessary information. The result will include the Public key (hasgh algorithm: sha1) and Public key token.

Step-by-step instructions to find your Extended Public Key

Tap on the small settings icon (three dots) in the top right. Select "Wallet Information." Tap on the "Extended Public Key" to copy it.