The Definitive Guide to Bitcoin Privacy & Surveillance — Privacy techniques built for Bitcoin: a deep dive analysis

Remaining private while using Bitcoin is difficult. Due to the base layer’s transparency, observers can easily deduce information about the network’s users. A user's financial history is effectively public unless they take measures to transact off-chain or use methods to obfuscate the transaction path of their coins.

To add to their concerns, users must display care not deanonymizing themselves through side channels. An individual’s privacy is only as strong as its weakest link. Bitcoin users risk deanonymization not just through their use of the network but through all communications. Blockchain analytics providers, ISPs, and governments are continually looking for ways to deanonymize individuals, and the odds seem stacked in their favor.