Hello,
Suppose I would expand my BTC portfolio to 10 or 15 BTC.....how would you store such a big amount of coins?
Ofcourse I would use a hardware wallet, but if I store them all on 1 wallet and I lose the wallet, or the house gets on fire and it burns, then I have lost those coins forever? Or are there still ways to get to the coins somehow in that case?
Would you advise to store let's say 15 BTC on 3 different hardware wallets (5BTC each), or would you spread it out even more? Ofcourse I'm not gonna buy more than max. 3 hardware wallets but in that case maybe 15 different laptop wallets (Electrum, Jaxx, Exodus etc.) with 1BTC each on it is safer?
I'm looking for the safest way to store a big amount of BTC and to minimize the risks of losing a big amount.
how to save their own digital currency safely, in the spirit of Satoshi Nakamoto who is truly without confidence. Cryptocurrency wallet is a digital wallet that you can use to store, send and receive various cryptocurrency. Wallet doesn't really "save" your money like a real world wallet. Instead, this saves your public and personal keys which in turn help you send and receive money. There are two storage methods that you can use to store cryptos, heat storage, and cold storage.
Heat storage
Heat storage, in simple terms, is when you store your digital currency on devices that are directly connected to the internet. This connection makes the device "hot".
You have to think about exchanging wallets, desktop clients, and cellphone wallets (any wallet on the device that will be connected to the internet) as a hot wallet. It's easy to access funds in a hot wallet, and if you live somewhere that accepts cryptos for micro payments, there's no harm in using them for daily expenses. Think of it like a fiat currency (issued by the government). You might go around with a portion of your wealth in the wallet for convenience, but most of you remain safe. Your hot wallet must behave like a real world wallet. You use it to bring a little cash for easy access. That is all. While transacting with a hot wallet is very simple, there are big losses in that. They are easily hacked. The entire crypto space has gained a lot of value recently and where there is value, crime is never far behind. Recent ransomware attacks and previous compromises from large exchanges must be an adequate beacon for newcomers.
Even though you won't save a lot of value in your hot wallet, it's important that you follow the backup steps in the recovery section of your wallet to avoid losing funds through human error. With your private key, and all the excellent phrases, you should be able to return any wallet without pain.
Excessive heat storage
-Access funds quickly.
-A large number of options, and support for various devices.
-An easy-to-use UI makes sending and receiving easy.
-Cons of heat storage
Influenced by cyber crime. Hackers, ransomware, and other sophisticated evil actors are constant threats.
Damaging the device can damage the wallet. Without carefully storing the private key, and sprinkling words you can lose your digital currency investment permanently.
You can still lose / damage / steal the restoration details.
Cold Storage
When you save a currency on a completely offline device, this is called cold storage. For those who are looking for the safest form of storage, a cold wallet is the way to go. This is best suited for long-term holders, who don't need access to their coins for months, or years at a time.
They are not without their own risk but if you follow the instructions correctly, and take every possible precaution, this is greatly minimized. Given the amount of attention that cryptocurrency has received over the past few years, unfortunately it has attracted the interest of attackers. Given that, it is a far safer choice to use cold storage as a way to save your money. San Francisco-based wallet and bitcoin exchange service CoinBase holds 97% of its coin reserves in hardware and paper wallets. What is a hardware and paper wallet? You will find out in one minute. For now, let's examine the pros and cons of cold storage:
Advantages of Cold Storage:
- A great place to store large amounts of coins for long periods of time.
-Provides a safety net against hackers and people with bad intentions because -fully offline.
Cons of Cold Storage
-It's still vulnerable to external damage, theft, and human carelessness in general.
-This is not ideal for fast and daily transactions.
Setting it up can be a little intimidating for beginners.
