Staying Safe in the Cryptosphere
We’re in the middle of a blockchain revolution. Traditional institutions of the past are giving way to a new innovation, where group consensus is the governing voice rather than a central authority. As cryptocurrency gains momentum and people adjust to the blockchain world, it has become increasingly important for individuals to understand how to protect themselves rather than relying on a central authority. While no one’s created a foolproof way of keeping their assets safe, there are a few simple things you can do to protect your crypto.
The first step to crypto security is knowing the difference between public and private keys. Every balance of crypto has two keys. One is the public key, which is like the address of your account, and is used publically (this is what people use when they send you coins). The private key is how you can access the funds within your account, so whoever controls the private keys controls the assets. Therefore, it is imperative you keep your private keys safe.
I’ll share some tips to keep your keys safe while you trade, and how to safely store your assets.
Stay Safe While Trading
The internet is where the crypto action happens, and hackers know that. If you take a few simple precautions whenever you’re trading online, you can significantly decrease the probability of having your private key compromised.
Whenever you set up an account on an exchange, make sure you use an email that’s never been compromised in a third-party data breach. If someone can hack into your email, they’re that much closer to getting your private keys. You might consider using a new, secure email account for your crypto accounts. Platforms like ProtonMail offer encrypted email accounts that might be a good idea.
SAFE COMPUTER
If other people can get into your computer, they can get into your crypto, so don’t ever log into exchanges or wallets or store crypto on compromised or third-party computers.
PASSWORD
Use a unique password for all your different accounts. As convenient as using something like Password1 is, a unique, long, and complicated password will go a lot farther in protecting your assets. If you’re worried about remembering all your passwords, write them down and keep them in a safe place, or using a password minder like LastPass.
2FA
Use 2 Factor-Authentication, both to enter your account and to enable any transactions. You can download the Google Authenticator, which adds an extra layer of protection to your accounts.
NOTE: if you delete the Authenicator app or reset your phone, you will lose your keys unless you’ve backed them up. You need to either back up your keys when you first store them, or before you reset your phone. If you wait until after, you will lose your keys!
PHISHING
Watch out for malware, ponzi schemes, and phishing. Make sure the computer you use doesn’t have any viruses. Often scams will take you to a website that looks identical to the genuine website, but the only difference is the URL. Beware of any website asking for passwords, remote access, or your private keys. To protect against phishing and malware, either google the site before clicking on it (as opposed to writing the website URL yourself, or bookmark any wallets or exchanges you use, and only access the website through these bookmarks.
KEEP QUIET
Don’t make yourself a target! The more hackers know about your crypto holding and patterns, the easier it is for them to come after you. Don’t talk about how much crypto you’ve made online, or which wallets and exchanges you have money in.
How to Store Your Assets
COLD STORAGE
Consider keeping large amounts of currency stored offline. Whether you decide to invest in a hardware wallet or use a paper wallet, your currency is likely much safer if you keep it in what the industry calls “cold storage,” which just means it’s offline. Only keep the amount you want to trade in a “hot storage,” or an online wallet or exchange. Think of cold storage like a savings account, and hot storage like the wallet your carry around everyday. Don’t keep money in your hot wallet unless you’re actively trading with it.
BACKUPS
Create backups of your wallets. Unless you can remember your 64 character private key by heart, you’re toast if lose your wallet. There are way too many stories of people losing crypto by forgetting the seed to their wallet, their password, or private keys, or through hard drive failure. Once you’ve lost access to your wallets, you’ve lost your crypto, and there’s no way to retrieve it. So create backups and store those backups in secure locations.
DIVERSIFICATION
Diversify! As the saying goes, don’t keep all your eggs in one basket. Consider storing your crypto in a variety of different ways and places. It’s much harder to hack into multiple wallets than just one.
The better each individual gets at protecting their cryptocurrency, the more secure the cryptosphere gets. By taking a few preventative steps, you can decrease the chance of getting hacked and dramatically increase the security of your assets, as well as making cryptocurrency safer for everyone else.
Neuryx Club
Cryptocurrency investment is an exciting world of opportunity, growth, and potential, and represents the future. Entering the cryptosphere is as much about learning as it is investing, and the important thing is not to invest more, but to invest smarter.
Neuryx Club is an AI-powered crypto trading assistant that offers exclusive analytics and advanced trading tools to help you stay on top of your crypto game and trade smarter.
