Must Know Security Tips to Protect your Bitcoin against Thefts and Hacks

[Greatest2020]

This small article is specially for my fellow beginners but everyone can read; you may still learn something even as a PRO you're...

As we all are now holding or trading Bitcoin, we should not forget the fact that this is digital money. We carry our money in our hands; several wallets, exchange platforms and what have you, we login and store our money. This is cool but have you thought of the numerous risks this is associated with?

It may interest you to know that keeping your assets in Exchange platforms is not even advisable(not safe), how then do you store/keep your Bitcoins safe you may ask?

One of the best ways to protect your Bitcoin investment is to secure a wallet; physical (or "cold") wallets thay look like USB drives and act as a physical store for tokens or coins.
But not many of us can acquire this, but it's advisable to go for it if you can afford it.

Apart from the above, there are some other small but vital things you can do on your own to safeguard your Bitcoin on exchange platforms or online wallets if that is the only option and cheapest way you've got. They include but not limited to the following:

1. Be conscious of the fact that you're holding money in your hands(I.e in your devices, which is online) and that the Internet is not safe. Trust me, that's the first step.

2. Avoid clicking anyhow link you don't know what they're, especially those without https, they can be malicious.

3. Keep your recovery phrases safe and don't disclose with anyone on no condition. No customer care of this exchange platforms can request for it, only a scammer will.

4. Avoid using the account you have your assets or investment in to participate in Airdrops, most of them are fake and only trying to get into your wallet.

5. Use 2-Factor Authentication where necessary and don't disclose your password to anyone.

6. Always monitor you devices to know where and where your accounts are logged in and if they're really you.

7. Make sure you don't allow unauthorised users to the devise where your crypto wallets are logged in.


I strongly believe when you do all these as a beginner, no one can hack you not to talk of stealing your Bitcoin.

Please, let's feel free to drop more tips we have noted down, maybe from experience so we learn together and be safe. Thanks!

[tranthidung]

• Recommended wallets
• NotYourKeys.org. Remember - Not your keys, not your coins. So read the first topic to choose good wallets to use. Avoid to store your Bitcoin in custodial wallets.
• [Guide] Secure air-gapped crypto wallet storage method
• Crypto Security: Passwords and Authentication
• Keep Your Crypto #SAFU (CZ's Tips)

[sheenshane]

7. Make sure you don't allow unauthorised users to the devise where your crypto wallets are logged in.

I believed the hardware wallet will have this function, once transactions have been done, it didn't leave any track on the device that you have used.  It has a feature that protects itself even you used malware-infected devices.  It's always advisable to use a hardware wallet for the safety of storing your crypto.

There are similar threads related to your topic and I think it's also useful if I drop it here.

• Frequently Ask Questions(FAQ) & Answers about cryptocurrency scam.
• Types of Scams in Crypto - Awareness

I strongly believe when you do all these as a beginner, no one can hack you not to talk of stealing your Bitcoin.

It has been discussed so many times here how to protect your Bitcoin and keep it safe, if newbies will spend their precious time reading and gain knowledge in the forum, that is the best shield against hackers and there's always had advantages if you're knowledgeable enough even basic information how Bitcoin will work and how you will keep it safe.

[Mpamaegbu]

This small article is specially for my fellow beginners but

I sincerely hope you're truly one of them. I said that because often we've seen those who claimed to be that to actually not be newbies (beginners) in the true sense of it.

• NotYourKeys.org. Remember - Not your keys, not your coins. So read the first topic to choose good wallets to use. Avoid to store your Bitcoin in custodial wallets.

How does one explain a situation where a third party is able to assess a wallet one has a passphrase to without one's knowledge? Isn't the passphrase like a Pkey for certain wallets?

[Lucius]

One of the best ways to protect your Bitcoin investment is to secure a wallet; physical (or "cold") wallets thay look like USB drives and act as a physical store for tokens or coins.
But not many of us can acquire this, but it's advisable to go for it if you can afford it.

Obviously, you are referring to hardware wallets, and of course, this is one of the safest ways to store sensitive information - but more importantly, every user of such a device should understand that having such a device does not mean that this is something that completely protects it from danger - the device is good into the extent that its owner is aware of all its advantages and disadvantages.

2. Avoid clicking anyhow link you don't know what they're, especially those without https, they can be malicious.

Today, every website can have SSL for free - and that doesn't have to be a measure that a website is good or bad. Of course, if we see that a website does not have SSL protection, it is just an additional sign that the owner is not a person who is aware of the need for such protection, and that such sites should be avoided when it comes to sending sensitive data.

 

3. Keep your recovery phrases safe and don't disclose with anyone on no condition. No customer care of this exchange platforms can request for it, only a scammer will.

Safe is a very general term, and it should be said that a safe way is certainly not to save a backup in an email, cloud, or desk drawer - and that one backup is never enough, but also that multiple backups in the same location don't make much sense. If you keep your backup or several of them in one place, and there is a fire, flood, earthquake and everything is destroyed - then the game is over.

[rosenbauer02]

You can use a password organizer to keep track or save your password every day or after each time you log in. If you have encrypted then put a password to it just like compressing a file or a folder contains the private information you are keeping secured.

[ReiMomo]

I have an experience from hacks. Two things mainly we need to look at. Checkout the URL we are using and 2FA for security. Make sure the URL starts with https://. This will eradicate logging into an unsecured web page. I later realized, I logged in with correct URL but it was http:// instead of htts://. I had a bit BTC and that was stolen within a second. So make sure to check all these small items before we proceed.

[coupable]

I wold also want to add another note for those wh want to store a considerable amount of money in bitcoin, and you don't have access to buy a hardaware wallet (always advisable to use a hardware wallet for the safety), i suggest to use an offline device in which you can store a copy of your private codes & from which you can sign an offline transaction before broadcasting it from a device connected to internet.

Snip ...

IS possible to create an airgapped setup so your private keys never touch an online machine... However, you'll need an ONLINE watch-only wallet to scan the blockchain looking for unspent outputs funding your address and create unsigned transactions.
These unsigned transactions are then moved to the offline (airgapped) machine for signing, and the signed transaction has to be moved back to an online machine for broadcasting.

If a signed transaction is not broadcasted to the network, it won't end up in the mempool of a mining node, so it has 0 chance of getting into a block (getting confirmed)

Thos quote was extracted from a topic which you may also want to visit : SENDING BITCOIN WITHOUT THE INTERNET

[jrrsparkles]

FYI, exchanges never give us their private keys so the actual suggestion should be never keep your coins in any exchanges for a while,keel it in a wallet (actual bitcoin wallet) and keep your private keys safe. Better go with the hardware wallets which are prone to hacks through online phishing attacks.

[ShowOff]

OP, you wrote an excellent article here as a newbie, but I hope you're not hiding behind your newbie account. Several times I get newbie plagiarizing just to write article that are considered useful in an effort to get merit, and this time I just want to remind you to link the original source if the article you posted is taken on the internet "not knowledge from your experience" but just ignore my advice if it is purely from yourself.

FYI, exchanges never give us their private keys so the actual suggestion should be never keep your coins in any exchanges for a while,keel it in a wallet (actual bitcoin wallet) and keep your private keys safe. Better go with the hardware wallets which are prone to hacks through online phishing attacks.

There is always a security risk wherever you store your asset, but the vulnerability of that risk depend on how you practice security advice for storing your crypto asset and where you control them. It is not advisable to store many asset on a centralized exchange unless you have considered the risks, and therefore crypto users should have a wallet that give them full control over their asset like a non-custodial wallet as opposed to a custodial wallet. This mean crypto users must have a private key for the wallet they use because this is the advice that many people always recommend "you don't have a private key so it's not your asset".

[Darker45]

5. Use 2-Factor Authentication where necessary...

It is always necessary. Where there is that feature available, activate it. Of course, don't forget to save the secret code. You'll need it in case your phone is lost or destroyed.

Anyway, many incidents of Bitcoin theft, especially among newbies, are by way of scams posing as investment opportunities. So I guess I would include in the list that beginners should dismiss right away every investment offer coming from ads, social media sites and groups, email, newsletters, random strangers, and so on. That's regardless whether the ROI is too-good-to-be-true or not. It is always better to err on the side of safety.

[lovesmayfamilis]

OP, you wrote an excellent article here as a newbie, but I hope you're not hiding behind your newbie account.

I don't see anything different in this post, as all the recommendations have been discussed many times already. OP, if you decide to educate newbies on the intricacies of Internet security, you should create a post where each recommendation would be confirmed by links to more detailed instructions.
For example, how would a beginner avoid clicking on links where HTTPS is missing? How can they avoid this, what needs to be done for this?
And so on for each item. Otherwise, all your advice looks like a test on the topic, which you understood from what you read earlier. For a complete beginner's understanding, this guide is not suitable!

[ShowOff]

I don't see anything different in this post, as all the recommendations have been discussed many times already.

You are right and I realize that this is a recurring topic. Nowadays newbie just need to read more and learn things they don't know on thread that have already been created by many other users as opposed to creating their own thread which I believe will end up repeating the thread. Ratimov has fulfilled his desire to help anyone "including newbie" discover something they don't know in the Beginners & Help Encyclopedia thread. So they just need to read it more because this thread is already filled with a very useful list of thread.

[ifarted]

This thread is very helpful to those users who are new to the forum.

3. Keep your recovery phrases safe and don't disclose with anyone on no condition. No customer care of this exchange platforms can request for it, only ascammee will.

When creating your own wallet it is important to remember or saved your recovery phrase, so that if you suddenly experience technical issues that requires you to re-open your wallet or if your cellphone got stolen, you do not need to worry since you keep your recovery phrase well.

Actually i knew someone who joined campaign and did a lot of hardwork in posting but after knowing that he cannot open his wallet. He was very upset about it. He got all these points and was also given a bunos but then everything was such a waste. He didn't even remember where his recovery phrase are saved.

That is why i strongly advice to always save your recovery phrase, to avoid situations like this.

[Piggymonster]

--snip--

This was happened to me, I was so careless and stupid for not saving my private key or even my recovery phrase in another storage like USB flash drive or write on a  notebook instead. I lost my phone and all the important files and now how can access my online wallet? I even lost three physical wallets that is how negligent I am.  This thread is a must read for all members specially us newbies, this will serve as a reminder and a guide on how to protect our online assets. I must be attentive and careful next time, I have learned my lesson.