You can use your Lightning wallet to easily, securely, and anonymously sign up and log in to The Bitcoin Company's web app! We'll release this feature on our mobile app soon!
For a more in-depth explanation of Lightning Authentication (LNURL-AUTH, sometimes shortened to LN-AUTH), including the pros and cons of using it compared to traditional email/password authentication, then check out this Stacker News article.
Warning! Each Lightning wallet is derived from a unique private key. Always back up the private key for your wallet. If you only use LN-AUTH for your TBC account, then you risk losing access to it if you lose your Lightning wallet private key (ie, because you won't have a fallback email/password linked to your TBC account).
In future, you'll be able to add an email/password authentication method to your TBC account if you signed up with LN-AUTH. However, for now, if you want both LN-AUTH and email/password authentication methods on your TBC account, then you should sign up with an email/password first, then add LN-AUTH to your account afterwards. Both of these setups are explained in the instructions below.
Signing up to a new TBC account with LN-AUTH
(assuming you do not have an account already)
Step 1 - Open our web app.
Step 2 - Click "Login" at the top right-hand corner.
Step 3 - Click "Create an account".
Step 4 - Click "Create an account with Lightning".
Step 5 - Scan the displayed QR code with your Lightning wallet, or copy/paste the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet.
Note: We're using Phoenix Wallet for this step, although you can use any Lightning wallet that has LN-AUTH enabled - the process is similar for other wallets.
Whether you plan to scan the QR code or copy/paste the LNURL string, first open your Lightning wallet and click "Send".
If you copied the LNURL string, then click "Paste from clipboard".
Alternatively, you can scan the QR code with your Lightning wallet.
Step 6 - After scanning the QR code or copy/pasting the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet, click "Sign-in" .
You should receive a confirmation on your Lightning wallet, and then automatically be redirected to our Gift Card page.
That's it! You've successfully created a TBC account with LN-AUTH and can now log in using your Lightning wallet (click here to learn how to log in with LN-AUTH)!
Adding LN-AUTH to an existing TBC account
Step 1 - Open our web app.
Step 2 - Click "Login" at the top right-hand corner.
Step 3 - Sign in using your TBC email and password credentials.
Step 4 - Click the honey badger icon on the top right-hand side, then click "Account".
Step 5 - Scroll to the bottom of the Account page to the "Authentication Methods" section, then click "Add LNURL Auth".
Step 6 - Scan the displayed QR code with your Lightning wallet, or copy/paste the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet.
Note: We're using Alby (a browser extension Lightning wallet) for this step, although you can use any Lightning wallet that has LN-AUTH enabled.
Whether you plan to scan the QR code or copy/paste the LNURL string, first open your Lightning wallet and click "Send".
If you copied the LNURL string, then paste it into your Lightning wallet and click "Continue".
Alternatively, you can scan the QR code with your Lightning wallet.
Step 7 - After scanning the QR code or copy/pasting the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet, click "Login" .
You should receive a confirmation on your Lightning wallet, and then automatically be redirected to our Gift Card page.
That's it! You've successfully linked LN-AUTH as an authentication method to your TBC account and can now log in using your Lightning wallet (click here to learn how to log in with LN-AUTH)!
Logging in to a TBC account with LN-AUTH
(assuming you have either created a new TBC account with LN-AUTH or added LN-AUTH to an existing TBC account)
Step 1 - Open our web app.
Step 2 - Click "Login" at the top right-hand corner.
Step 3 - Click "Sign in with Lightning".
Step 4 - Scan the displayed QR code with your Lightning wallet, or copy/paste the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet.
Note: We're using Phoenix Wallet for this step, although you can use any Lightning wallet that has LN-AUTH enabled - the process is similar for other wallets.
Whether you plan to scan the QR code or copy/paste the LNURL string, first open your Lightning wallet and click "Send".
If you copied the LNURL string, then click "Paste from clipboard".
Alternatively, you can scan the QR code with your Lightning wallet.
Step 5 - After scanning the QR code or copy/pasting the LNURL string into your Lightning wallet, click "Sign-in" .
You should receive a confirmation on your Lightning wallet, and then automatically be redirected to our Gift Card page.
That's it! You've successfully logged in to your TBC account with LN-AUTH!
Contact us at support@thebitcoincompany.com with any feedback or questions!