Nostr notes by Ungovernable

Max spent years telling people to go all in. Rent, don't buy. ...

2026-10-13T22:00:00Z

Max spent years telling people to go all in. Rent, don't buy. Life savings in.

He wouldn't give that advice to himself, or anyone he cares about, today.

His test: if a hack has ever made your heart drop and you thought you were finished, you've got too much in Bitcoin. Or, as Q adds, your self-custody setup isn't good enough.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/93m-drained-from-tampered-ledger-devices/

Max used to think multisig wrecked your privacy. Then ...

2026-10-13T19:00:00Z

Max used to think multisig wrecked your privacy. Then BlackCoffee (npub1dqe…mmgt) flipped it for him.

Someone breaks in and demands you move the funds. If your defence is a passphrase stored in another country, you're relying on them believing you.

With multisig you can prove it: "I can't fucking do it, and here's why."

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/93m-drained-from-tampered-ledger-devices/

Seed signer has always been a decent option. MVMS also an option

2026-10-13T18:03:56Z

In reply to nevent1q…xzte
_________________________

Seed signer has always been a decent option. MVMS also an option

Yes. That said nothing is perfect and although I have huge ...

2026-10-13T18:02:47Z

In reply to nevent1q…3nfs
_________________________

Yes. That said nothing is perfect and although I have huge respect for foundation and think they are the most capable team if not put all my eggs in one basket.

I don’t mean to scare people but it is scary out there and I ...

2026-10-13T18:01:46Z

In reply to nevent1q…xfjm
_________________________

I don’t mean to scare people but it is scary out there and I don’t want people over invested and having regrets or not being able to look after their family.

They are quite different. Also tor and VPN are the best we have ...

2026-10-13T18:00:03Z

In reply to nevent1q…rtxp
_________________________

They are quite different. Also tor and VPN are the best we have but for privacy when sending funds there are better options.

I think there are better options but if done correctly it’s not ...

2026-10-13T17:58:32Z

In reply to nevent1q…x67d
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I think there are better options but if done correctly it’s not a bad way.

I believe so yes

2026-10-13T17:57:51Z

In reply to nevent1q…hj6n
_________________________

I believe so yes

Passphrase maxis won't like this one. After five years of ...

2026-10-13T16:00:00Z

Passphrase maxis won't like this one.

After five years of official Bitcoin support, Q says the single biggest cause of lost funds, or the panic of thinking you've lost them, is passphrases. By a country mile.

Case sensitivity, spaces, special characters, not knowing what a fingerprint is. Get one detail wrong and there's zero fault tolerance.

QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/93m-drained-from-tampered-ledger-devices/

"I would be the first person to call myself out." A year ...

2026-10-13T13:00:00Z

"I would be the first person to call myself out."

A year ago Q's advice was that multisig probably isn't for everybody. After this year, and after the Ledger implant, it's changed: for long-term storage, single sig with or without a passphrase isn't enough.

Buy direct, always. But the only thing that would have survived every attack this year is multi-vendor multisig.

QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/93m-drained-from-tampered-ledger-devices/

Where the foam padding behind a Ledger Nano X screen should be: a ...

2026-10-12T22:00:00Z

Where the foam padding behind a Ledger Nano X screen should be: a microcontroller with its markings scraped off, a Nordic cellular modem, an eSIM and a custom antenna.

It's wired into the lines that carry data to the screen. When setup shows your 24 words, it reads them and sends them to the attacker over its own mobile connection.

It never goes near the secure chip, so the device passes the genuine check. Ledger's own docs say the check can't detect this.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/93m-drained-from-tampered-ledger-devices/

Max's take on the Liquid hack: you look at a federation and ...

2026-10-12T19:25:00Z

Max's take on the Liquid hack: you look at a federation and assume you'd need collusion for anything to go wrong, then something nobody saw coming sideswipes it.

Roy, who sat on the federation, says people did see it coming. Liquid's core principles should have prevented the attack, but a federation member was allowed to take funds into a hot wallet. "I didn't know about it, and I was a federation member. But other federation member knew about it and didn't do anything about it."

He calls that an execution problem.

Breez_tech (npub1jug…fc28)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/bitcoin-in-every-app/

"If Boltz couldn't sustain the attack, it means something ...

2026-10-12T16:00:00Z

"If Boltz couldn't sustain the attack, it means something has dramatically changed in the ecosystem."

Roy counts Michael and Kilian as close friends and doesn't think there's a more capable team in Bitcoin. That's why he reads their hack as a warning to everyone else.

Small teams are up against AI-generated attacks funded by serious teams and governments, burning tokens and money to find a way in. Bitcoin is the low hanging fruit: open source, it's about money, and plenty of projects run hot wallets. He expects consolidation, and says this is only the first wave.

Boltz (npub1psm…8970)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/bitcoin-in-every-app/

"Lightning is not a good privacy solution. It's very ...

2026-10-12T12:30:00Z

"Lightning is not a good privacy solution. It's very concentrated."

Roy from Breez pointed at Blink's hack report from the day before: attackers trying to launder funds through Lightning. Then the numbers. About nine nodes process 80 to 90% of the volume, and anyone who gets hold of those nodes learns a lot about the flow of funds. Ask any LLM to map the network and you'll see the same thing.

Max has spent years arguing with people who say Lightning beats Whirlpool and Monero for privacy. His reaction says the rest.

Breez_tech (npub1jug…fc28)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/bitcoin-in-every-app/

"Especially in areas where there's poverty, they see ...

2026-10-08T22:00:00Z

"Especially in areas where there's poverty, they see someone travelling, they see someone paying in Bitcoin, it would be extremely easy to just send a message to someone else who waits outside with a wrench."

The question put to Nathan Day of BTC Map was not a wet blanket on adoption, it was a practical one. A Square terminal or a Visa top up card hides what you are paying with. A Lightning QR code at the till does not.

The ask: terminals that take both, so the cashier cannot tell.

"Yes, I wanna push Bitcoin adoption. I want my family to be alive more."

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/freedom-fest-uk-with-nathan-day/

Utah's SB 73 told adult sites to block VPN users or locate ...

2026-10-08T20:00:00Z

Utah's SB 73 told adult sites to block VPN users or locate every visitor. A federal judge put the VPN part on hold, finding it burdens people outside Utah and demands something technically impossible.

A site simply cannot know where a VPN user really is.

The part they kept: it's still illegal in Utah for those sites to explain how to use a VPN.

Age verification is ramping up everywhere as a way to identify everyone online, and VPNs are the obvious next target.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/the-cop-who-robbed-silk-road/

Blink's post-mortem: a permissions flaw open since October ...

2026-10-08T16:00:00Z

Blink's post-mortem: a permissions flaw open since October 2023 let the attacker grant themselves admin rights, take over 35 custodial accounts and pull 6.61 BTC from 24 of them.

Nine of the targeted accounts had 2FA turned on. The attacker logged into all nine and every attempt to use them was refused. None of them lost anything.

Yes, it's a pain in the ass. Turn it on anyway, everywhere, without fail.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/the-cop-who-robbed-silk-road/

A bent cop skimming seized bitcoin makes headlines because the ...

2026-10-08T13:00:00Z

A bent cop skimming seized bitcoin makes headlines because the chain eventually gave him away.

Cash doesn't. It's still what most things run on, and it's perfect for it.

Kick the door in, count £100k, write down £50k. Who's checking?

It makes you wonder how often this happens.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/the-cop-who-robbed-silk-road/

Intake at the Oklahoma City transit center ends with a body ...

2026-10-07T22:00:00Z

Intake at the Oklahoma City transit center ends with a body scanner.

The officer running it sits behind a lead curtain. The warning sticker tells you to stay behind the blue line for your safety.

The warning is not for you. Prisoners are told to jam themselves against the machine, "so they can make sure to dose you with the radiation of the six guys ahead of you."

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

11PM. Keonne asks his cellmate what time they turn the lights ...

2026-10-07T19:00:00Z

11PM. Keonne asks his cellmate what time they turn the lights off.

They don't.

He covers his head with a sheet that smells of motor oil and sawdust, lies with half his body on bare metal, and asks himself if a year off his sentence was worth leaving Morgantown.

All he wants is to call his wife, Lauren.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

Keonne Rodriguez was moved between two prisons a four hour drive ...

2026-10-07T16:00:00Z

Keonne Rodriguez was moved between two prisons a four hour drive apart.

It took thirty days, two transcontinental flights, three multi hour bus rides, a cellmate doing time for murder and a cellmate who couldn't stop shitting.

"I preferred the murder."

Letter #7, part one.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

First night in the Oklahoma City transit center. The officer ...

2026-10-07T13:00:00Z

First night in the Oklahoma City transit center. The officer brings Keonne half a foam mattress, because that is all they have.

His ass and legs will be on bare metal. "Welcome to prison," says the officer.

"I understand this is prison. You still have an obligation to provide us basic amenities like bedding. This isn't fucking Guantanamo."

The officer shrugs, drops it on the floor and walks off. His cellmate, doing twenty years for murder, has the last word.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

"Fuck me. These people are maniacs." @npub15c8…ssvx The ...

2026-10-06T22:00:00Z

"Fuck me. These people are maniacs." QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)

The Supreme Court said taxing made-up returns breached human rights law in 2021. (NO SHIT)

They force you to sell to pay the unrealised bill, then tax you on the sale.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/the-cop-who-robbed-silk-road/

Intake at the Oklahoma City transit center ends with a body ...

2026-10-04T15:00:00Z

Absolute pleasure having you on.

2026-10-03T23:34:12Z

In reply to nevent1q…arvt
_________________________

Absolute pleasure having you on.

Keonne Rodriguez is minimum security, spent close to two years on ...

2026-10-03T22:00:00Z

Keonne Rodriguez is minimum security, spent close to two years on pretrial release, self-surrendered and has not had a single incident report.

So he asked for a transfer furlough: drive himself to his new prison, at his own expense.

Three days later it was denied without explanation. Instead he went through BOP transit, which he had heard costs around $10,000 per prisoner.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

"What used to be its Achilles heel, which is a load of text ...

2026-10-03T16:00:00Z

"What used to be its Achilles heel, which is a load of text based config files and CLIs, has now, in an agentic age, become its superpower, because agents can just drive Linux."

Nathan Day has run Linux on the desktop for twenty years. Hours lost to printers and monitors back in the day.

Every annoying thing about it, plain text config, verbose logs, everything in a terminal, is exactly what an AI agent needs to customise and fix the machine for you. Mac and Windows don't give an agent that kind of grip.

npub1cn670f663n3ks02jnnlsvd5y88zjnefy8343ykaxs7y3nzzketrsrjwt8a

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/freedom-fest-uk-with-nathan-day/

11PM. Keonne asks his cellmate what time they turn the lights ...

2026-10-03T13:00:00Z

Keonne's cellmate in Oklahoma City introduces himself as ...

2026-10-02T22:04:00Z

Keonne's cellmate in Oklahoma City introduces himself as Shadow. He is on his way to a penitentiary to do twenty years for murder.

Keonne is on his way to a camp "for the fake crime of not having a license I didn't even need in the first place."

The BOP put them in the same cell.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/letter-7-notes-from-the-inside/

Keonne Rodriguez was moved between two prisons a four hour drive ...

2026-10-02T19:05:00Z

First night in the Oklahoma City transit center. The officer ...

2026-10-02T15:00:00Z

Bitget got hit for about $387M on 24 September. Mostly ETH, Tron ...

2026-09-30T17:04:00Z

Bitget got hit for about $387M on 24 September. Mostly ETH, Tron and USDT, no bitcoin. It says its user protection fund covered the lot.

Hacks like this are normal over in ETH land. Vulnerabilities everywhere, money flying all over the place, scams everywhere.

So who looks at that and says, do you know what I want to insure? Fucking DeFi!

What are they charging to make it worth their while?

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/did-bitcoin-just-go-dark/

I guess it’s less guilt and more wishing I could go back in ...

2026-09-29T23:03:04Z

In reply to nevent1q…y8rg
_________________________

I guess it’s less guilt and more wishing I could go back in time and try again.

👀

2026-09-29T23:00:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…va8y
_________________________

👀

From memory the open dime is fine.

2026-09-29T23:00:30Z

In reply to nevent1q…qtzg
_________________________

From memory the open dime is fine.

It really is a joy to use, loads of features but simple at the ...

2026-09-29T22:59:48Z

In reply to nevent1q…mrmv
_________________________

It really is a joy to use, loads of features but simple at the same time. Seth For Privacy (nprofile…47zl) is a bit of a toxic maxi but the wallet is solid.

Write 12 next to 3. Write 1 next to 23. Both read 123. That is ...

2026-09-29T16:03:00Z

Write 12 next to 3. Write 1 next to 23. Both read 123.

That is bug B in Blockstream's Liquid post-mortem. Cache entries were built by joining fields together without recording how long each one was, so two different range proofs could produce the same entry.

It was introduced by the August patch for bug A, a flaw dating back to 2018.

The attacker used it to mint about 4,000 L-BTC backed by nothing and pegged out 3,996 of them.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/did-bitcoin-just-go-dark/

Bitcoin has a very bad privacy problem. There are ways around it ...

2026-09-29T13:00:00Z

Bitcoin has a very bad privacy problem. There are ways around it with swaps and Lightning, but the base layer is an open ledger.

We also know changing Bitcoin at the protocol level is nigh on impossible these days, and that isn't always a bad thing.

Shielded Bitcoin is interesting because in theory it could be live and opt in on Bitcoin as it is. The normal wallet experience, with Zcash-level privacy on top for whoever wants it.

Still holes in it. Worth watching.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/did-bitcoin-just-go-dark/

Gun to each of your heads. Which three signing devices are you ...

2026-09-28T15:00:00Z

Gun to each of your heads. Which three signing devices are you picking for a 2 of 3 today?

Max opens with "three cold cards, only the old firmware though" and gets it out of his system, then answers properly: SeedSigner and two Passports. His reason for the short list is worth more than the list. "I've not tested any other bits out, and I only wanna say what I'm comfortable with using myself."

Q goes Passport Prime, a Trezor Safe 7 and a Blockstream Jade Plus, with the same caveat on the two he has not handled in person.

The part that actually matters is the same from both. Sparrow as the coordinator, and never all three from one manufacturer.

QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)
Foundation (npub1s0v…pq6j)
SeedSigner (npub17ty…3mgl)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/answering-your-questions/

"It always used to be Start9 until my laptop nearly set on ...

2026-09-28T13:00:00Z

"It always used to be Start9 until my laptop nearly set on fire. The battery warped. Actually it was at Black Coffee's house"

Asked to pick one self hosting node and only one, Max goes Umbrel, and he knows it is not the cypherpunk answer.

"I fucked around with Start9 a lot. I fucked around with a lot of other nodes over the years. And the only node that I've never had a problem on ever is Umbrel."

He destroyed a Start9 node twice running a Monero node on it and had to rebuild from scratch both times. Same setup on Umbrel worked straight out of the box.

Q's caveat: the licence still is not truly open source. As a product though, hard to fault.

MaxUM (npub1lqv…fx0r)
BlackCoffee (npub1dqe…mmgt)
QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/answering-your-questions/

"Honestly, I've just been so bored with Bitcoin and ...

2026-09-27T16:01:00Z

"Honestly, I've just been so bored with Bitcoin and crypto for, like, a year now. Not building on it. I freaking love Cake Wallet and all the things we're getting to do. But actually engaging with and learning about the space, it's boring."

Q had just said the local AI scene feels like 2017 Bitcoin to him. Everyone out of the woodwork, tokens per second doubling, the excitement back.

Seth's answer was "oh my god, yes", followed by an admission most people in his position would keep to themselves.

Max,s pushback: the last eight or ten weeks have not been boring. Maybe not exciting in the right ways, but not boring.

Seth For Privacy (npub1tr4…2y5g)
QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)
cakewallet (npub1j9q…s2yg)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/answering-your-questions/

The actual prep that matters Lasting local friendships. People ...

2026-09-27T15:00:00Z

The actual prep that matters

Lasting local friendships.
People you can count on — and who can count on you.
Small town > big city.
Food and energy sovereignty
@jon (npub1luw…9cqr)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/resilience-is-a-verb/

Q: "I genuinely think in the next twelve months we're ...

2026-09-25T19:31:00Z

Q: "I genuinely think in the next twelve months we're gonna have Opus 4.6 or slightly higher level intelligence available for mobile phones."

Seth: "I don't think I would argue with that."
Seth For Privacy (npub1tr4…2y5g)

The reasoning is densification. The 27B models that already match Opus 4.6 class need roughly 24 gigs to run, high end phones already carry twelve to sixteen, and a quantisation that dropped this week does nearly the same job in 12.

It will not be as fast as hitting an API. Same intelligence though, running in the background on your phone, all the time, with no limit to hit.

QnA (npub15c8…ssvx)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/freedom-tech-friday/answering-your-questions/

Right about covid. Wrong about how to discus it. People stopped ...

2026-09-25T16:03:00Z

Right about covid.

Wrong about how to discus it. People stopped listening.

Brother in law is on medication for the rest of his life.

Being right is not the same as being heard.

"I could have done and should have done a better job of explaining my case, and I didn't."

Make the next thing you say the thing they can hear.

https://ungovernable.network/shows/specials/mk-ungovernable-what-do-you-reckon/

Max, on the Revolut leak: I guarantee you, people will die from ...

2026-09-15T19:15:00Z

Max, on the Revolut leak: I guarantee you, people will die from this.

Q's answer was that it sounds hyperbolic, and he is not wrong.

Nobody gets a list. Revolut is not going to write to an individual customer and tell them that a file saying they own this much Bitcoin is now sitting with criminals. You cannot even warn a friend, because you have no way of knowing whether they are on it.

What you get instead is people outside on the security camera with knives. Or a phone that rings every day. Or nothing at all, for years, until it is not nothing.

We are treated like criminals for trying to protect ourselves and our families. We are not wrong.

MaxUM (npub1lqv…fx0r)

https://ungovernable.network/shows/bitcoin-brief/kyc-kill-your-customer/