How do we keep our cryptocurrency assets? Because I researched various good practices that we can apply as holders. Because it is not enough that we know how to find good coins and which one to buy. But we don't know how to protect it.
In the cryptocurrency case, there are many hacked incidents although when I was just starting, I experienced my laptop being hacked and fortunately, I didn't have much important stuff saved in my file there. Because others can be considered experts here but they still get hacked, how about the people who always start here?
So this will be our guide to protecting our cryptocurrencies. And it applies to long-term and short-term holders.
1. Keep your seed phrase safe and secure : private and seed phrase is the most important aspect ofcryptocurrency owners. Because this is what we use. so we can access our crypto assets in the wallet, Hardware wallets and Non-custodial wallets all have seed phrase and private key.
That's why if we create a new wallet, the seed phrase we need to keep and hide so it doesn't end up to others or disappear. The mistake is because others put it they do it online, in notepad or google Sheets. After all, it's easy it's accessible. But it can also be easily accessed by those hackers, so it is not recommended. So the advise of most people put it in
"Secure offline storage" Just write the risk on paper, it's an easy break, lose or burn. We have put it offline it's easy to break the paper, but it will still result in the loss of our cryptos.
2. Hardware wallet : This is advisable if we want to hold for a long period. It is a physical device specifically designed to securely store our crypto assets offline without being connected to internet and potential cyber threats.
It is also one of the safest and most secure methods of a strong large amount of cryptocurrency it is much better. This is an option compared to other cold storage, Normally, it has a built-in display button. And the offline storage device that is not connected to the internet is a USB drive or Encrypted hard drive. It is recommended for people with big holds of cryptocurrencies.
And if you are also planning to buy a hardware wallet, make sure you buy from the manufacturer, not either It is advisable that you buy it secondhand the hardware wallet has been compromised.
3. Two-Factor Authentication : We an adding security measures to also protect our cryptocurrency account. Particularly the centralized crypto exchange. In exchanges, normally there is a way to turn on our 2FA authentication. The most common 2FA is the one-time password OTP generated via SMS or APP to mobile users.
And with bank accounts normally, it has OTP through SMS or text message when we log in to the new device or
Let's transact online and we'll receive something for it can proceed and it is also applicable to the rest of us account online, social media account, and cryptocurrency exchange, mobile wallet, etc.
2FA via apps like google is a more recommendable authenticator or Authy. And not via text message, because otp text message is easy to hack. Some are used hackers are just as devising to intercept that and theirs get the OTP.
Anyway, as long as we have 2FA enabled it's much better than not having it. But if we base it on security, google authenticator is more secure. But if you want the safest google authenticator you can use
"Yubikey"source:
https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/two-factor-authentication4. Strong password : We can say that a password is strong if it has upper and lowercase, number and special characters. Then its length is at least 12 characters long, it is more difficult for hackers to guess it or extract the password.
Another risk we take is using the same password in different accounts. Once the hacker has access to one password he has access to all accounts. And it is dangerous in cryptocurrency accounts. Imagine if a hacker has access to one of your accounts in an exchange because you only have one password, there is a possibility that he can also access your other accounts.
Sometimes it's hard to think of complex passwords and then we need many more, and this is where password managers come in because it automatically generates a random and secure password for each account, it's also encrypted and accessible only with a master password. This will also help to avoid the risk of forgetting the password because we don't need to memorize it and always provide a convenient way to manage all of our passwords in one place.
5. Software update :This is also one of the procedures that we sometimes forget to update. Updating our software and wallet regularly is also a crucial part to protect our cryptocurrency. Sometimes when the software is outdated, it has vulnerabilities, because the software used by hackers is also updated and they may discover a way to exploit the software.
And to address this issue, software developers always release security patches to fix them. So we have to update that we have security measures on our device.
And not only that, but we also often use operating systems and web browsers, and we also need to update them. Because hackers also use it to hack us, so we need to regularly check if there is something new or if we need to install it in the software and web browsers.
6. Reputable Exchange :How do we know if an exchange is reputable based on its track record? There must be "Robust security measures" such as encryption, 2 Factor Authentication, and secure storage of funds in a cold wallet.
They need to be transparent in their operation and have a clear policy for handling security breaches and user funds. It also adds reputation if a cryptocurrency exchange is regulated by a financial authority. And just a few of the reputable exchanges here that I can say are Binance, Okex, crypto.com, and others, it just depends on the user's preference.
7. Be careful with email and links :This is where phishing attacks often come from, which are used by cybercriminals to steal sensitive information, credentials, and private keys.
Those phishing emails or links may appear from a reputable source such as a crypto exchange or wallet provider, and those who receive them will think it is the original website but it turns out to be a trap. There are so many incidents like this, that even crypto holders when they search on google, many fake websites will appear that they don't know are malware.
8. Educate yourself :This is our most important weapon to protect our crypto is our knowledge about this industry. And the crypto space is rapidly evolving, along with security threats and vulnerabilities. By staying informed and educated about what is happening in crypto we can think of necessary steps to protect our cryptocurrency assets. The ones who are often hacked are the new ones because they don't have enough knowledge to protect their crypto, they have not updated with the new things that hackers do to trick users.
I hope this information has helped some of our communities to protect our crypto assets
