"The Zcash value proposition is in private transactions. However, private transactions are not the default and many users simply do not know how to initially create shielded (private) transactions, aka a “t” => “z”.
— How to Shield Your ZEC; Coin.FYI; Accessed 2022/08/19 @ 20:05 SAST
I was one of those individuals. One of the things I don't like about ZCash (ZEC) is that, although it's a privacy coin that allows for shielding, the shielding isn't enabled by default, but opt-in (unlike Monero). However, the fact that I didn't know how to do that is a me problem for not bothering how to find out (although I am not alone in that). My thanks to Thomas Wolf for pointing that out to me. The information's out there, if you look for it, so that's what I did. Here's what I found:
"Shielded Zcash ensures transactions remain confidential while allowing people to selectively share address and transaction information for auditing or regulatory compliance.
Zcash addresses are either private (z-addresses) or transparent (t-addresses). Private z-addresses start with a “z,” and transparent t-addresses start with a "t." Between these two types of addresses, there are four transaction types.
"A Z-to-Z transaction appears on the public blockchain, so it is known to have occured and that the fees were paid. But the addresses, transaction amount and the memo field are all encrypted and not publicly visible. This type of encryption is only possible through the use of zero-knowledge proofs."
— How it Works; ZCash Website; Accessed 2022/08/19 @ 20:00 SAST
TL;DR: If you would like to contribute to the greatest good, while exerting minimum effort for the zcash ecosystem, hold you coins in a “z” address (using YWallet). This benefits everyone using zk transactions and increases the size of the anonymity set.
According to Coin.FYI, the process is as follows:
1. Hold your coins in both T and Z addresses. (How do I get these?)
2. Fund your T address by sending ZEC to it. (This works in much the same way as any other crypto transaction you perform.)
3. Send from your T address to Z address using a zcash wallet such as zcashd, winzec or YWallet. Make sure to send more ZEC than you'll need to use for any one transaction. (Consider this your main ZEC wallet, out of which you'll send small amounts to others, either T or, preferably, Z addresses.)
4. Use your Z address for transactions.
It's as easy/simple/trivial as that.
Of course, the official ZCash docs suggest that, for added security, one shouldn't run any other applications on the same device as the ZEC wallet (and especially not at the same time). Putting it in a container (Docker) or on a virtual machine (VM; QEmu, VirtualBox or VMWare) would probably go a long way to helping with that. Using a VPN (such as Mullvad or Nord) with an encrypted drive or partition (VeraCrypt) couldn't hurt, either. It depends on your level of paranoia and how much inconvenience up with which you're prepared to put.
Note: Having looked at my ZEC address in Exodus, it is apparent that it is a T address. I think it's time for me to get YWallet, even though I don't currently hold any ZEC.
Thumbnail image: Photo by Erik Mclean from/on Pexels
