There has been a mixer that used dust transactions to advertise their service. If that's the case, a block explorer will probably give a hint if you look at the sending address.
It could indeed also be used for tracking, but only if you don't pay attention and let your wallet choose which inputs to use.
I'm using bitcoin core wallet is there a way to mark these coins as bad? Or tell the wallet do not spend?
You can do this:
Click
Settings >
Options > W
allet > Enable coin
control features.
Then, click Send > Inputs > right mouse button on a dust transaction >
Lock unspent.
Or (after enabling coin control features):
When you send a transactions, click Inputs and manually choose what to use (I always do this).
When fees are low, you could send the dust to a burner address (one at a time, each to a different address), or you could even
consolidate the dust and your real inputs as long as the fees are lower than the dust is worth. Make sure to only use the dust input and your real input from one address at a time, so you don't link different addresses together (which would reduce your privacy).
Awesome! Many thanks this is exactly what I was looking for. Googling didn't help much, because I'd only get generic articles about what dust attack is. And some occasional mentions that samourai wallet allows you to lock those transactions.
Again, thanks for the help.
I've been getting tons of dust transactions to my wallet, 0.00000546BTC every month or so.
Is that dust transactions come from this address? : 1ViViGLEawN27xRzGrEhhYPQrZiTKvKLo
If that is the case I explain all few months ago, so you can follow advice you get in this thread, or maybe write to this company and ask them to stop sending free donations to your address.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5103542.0no it is from this address
https://www.blockchain.com/btc/address/1BettingEynX2Lg24jnmCGDHL3vC6r9yX1 looks like they've spammed a lot of addresses