The message remains consistent from January to December

[Davidvictorson]

The consistent message throughout the year, from January to December, persists: Get your coins off exchanges. Those who dismiss the harsh and unfortunate lessons of others may find themselves learning from their own expereince. We'll be here to say, "We warned you, but you didn't heed the advice." A recent incident involving a Twitter user, exemplifies this. He called out Binance after his account, holding over fifteen thousand USD, was inexplicably deleted. Despite the assistance of an alleged Binance support staff in restoring the account, the coins remained missing, and the account history vanished without a trace.
Again I say, safeguard your coins by removing them from exchanges. Do you ever trust that they will be safe there.

If you are wondering where to move your bitcoins to after taking them off exchanges, here is what Charles-Tim advises:

One of the safe way to securely hold bitcoin is the use of hardware wallet, because your bitcoin will be readily accessible for you to use unlike many other cold storage means. But you need to be careful and operate your hardware wallet with the app you will use to operate it with clean internet environment with no malware.

Hardware wallets like trezor and ledger nano are recommended, I will also recommend you to use electrum as the app you will use to operate the hardware wallet, you can download it from electrum.org.

But, irrespective of the wallet you are using, you need to operate the device in a clean internet environment in such a way the device used to operate it should contain no malware.

[Findingnemo]

He called out Binance after his account, holding over fifteen thousand USD, was inexplicably deleted. Despite the assistance of an alleged Binance support staff in restoring the account, the coins remained missing, and the account history vanished without a trace.
Again I say, safeguard your coins by removing them from exchanges. Do you ever trust that they will be safe there.

It's not just been told this year, this has been the recommendation from crypto users all the time because crypto exchanges are getting hacked more often so it will be a surprise if we witness a year with no exchange incident.
"Not your keys not your cryptos".

If you are wondering where to move your bitcoins to after taking them off exchanges, here is what Charles-Tim advises:

Hardware wallets like trezor and ledger nano are recommended, I will also recommend you to use electrum as the app you will use to operate the hardware wallet, you can download it from electrum.org.

This is a recommendation given a couple of years back and it is still valid though about hardware wallets but the two names you were talking about can't be trusted especially Ledger because they have been trying to do various stunts and also get caught with Ledger Open Source Fakery?!

There are still other hardware wallets out there but I would say Running electrum in an air-gapped device is good enough for an average user, let's say anything below 1BTC.

[sunsilk]

That advise is not going to change. As long as these exchanges won't provide the private keys which is not gonna happen, never store your Bitcoins there and hard earned money for long.

They shouldn't be use like that because their main purpose is just a marketplace where we buy and sell and then withdraw our money. Whoever is using them as a long term wallet is using them wrongly.

We've been there and done that and it's better to learn the experience and lesson from the others than learn it the expensive way, right?

[BIT-BENDER]

It's best to avoid making an obvious mistake that seeking for how to rectify the mistake, leaving your fund on an exchange is a total mistake and it has been repeated here many time to avoid such mistakes so it's hard to claim you aren't aware of the mistake.
I know some newbies that is aware of the mistake but still choose to hold BTC in their exchange claim that before it gets large they would remove, with exchange especially Decentralised exchange you don't see anything coming, your account can easily be blocked and you lose access to your funds any thing can happen at anytime the hard truth is that once you don't own the private keys, seed phrase then it's not your wallet.

[Amphenomenon]

At the moment I don't really think I will feel much pity for anyone who will fall victim of CEX and if such victim is a member of Bitcointalk then no pity because even before the mass public started seeing the reasons not to save their coins on CEX, we here have been taught and given reasons why we should avoid CEX, Thank God though that everyone is almost seeing it crystal clear now, the reasons for avoiding saving coins in CEX especially after the whole FTX crisis and binance being found guilty of the charge by SEC this year.
 $15000 is a really huge amount of money, now wondering if this victim has not heard about not saving on CEX or at least only keep only small amounts for your basic spending

[SatoPrincess]

As a community, we emphasize on the need to store one’s seed phrase offline. It’s even more important that you choose a wallet that gives you complete control over your funds. Which is why we advocate for non custodial wallets and hardware wallets for storing large amounts of Bitcoins instead of exchanges. I often wonder how come people still make these mistakes, Bitcoin isn’t “new” anymore, there is a decade worth of information and experiences of people in the crypto space. From MtGox to FTX, exchanges have proven to be unreliable for hodling bitcoins. Exchanges are good for one thing, buying and selling coins. The smart thing to do after making purchases, is to transfer your coins to your non custodial wallet.

[Hamza2424]

Hmm, OP the message is not the same from JAN to DEC it will be the same from the day of being in the Bitcoin community to infinity or the end of the time. But the point is if you cant afford a hardware wallet and just entered providing some service and accumulating Bitcoin from there better still prefer your custody. The Exchanges hot wallets are digital numbers that can never be expected as real-time assets but in your custody will be always on-chain, authentic assets with ownership you possess in real-time.

The more you are capable of spending in security you should, the more you prefer a separate system while interacting with the wallets, and traders from the one you are using for social media and day-to-day tasks. It will help improve your vulnerabilities in phishing attacks.

[aysg76]

For some people who understand the risks it's a message while who are having blind trust on these CEX it's just a normal post so different perspectives but once you get into that situation and even loose few bucks you will realize the true meaning of not your keys not your coins.The best solution is to keep your coins under your possession only with seeds backup safely at secure place but if you are seeing exchange safe then go read the market news where they are going bankrupt and hacking cases are exposed.

[dzungmobile]

"Not your keys, not your bitcoins". This reminder has been here many years and through many years of Bitcoin market history, many exchanges came with us and disappeared. Their disappearances can be a scam exit, a hack causes a shut down of service, a seizure by government or a self service closure.

The general common thing is if you leave your bitcoin on those dead exchanges and failed to withdraw your coins, you lost your coins.

Bitcoin Q&A: Not your Keys, Not your Coins
Exchange graveyard

[Darker45]

That's the consistent message not just throughout the year 2023 but throughout the entire existence of centralized exchanges. Not only are exchanges hacked, they also went bankrupt, and they may also disappear into thin air all of a sudden. And then there's also the locking and freezing and suspension of accounts and features. And then there's also the wrong way of using centralized exchanges. They're trading platforms. They're not wallets for us to leave our funds.

[Gladitorcomeback]

The consistent message throughout the year, from January to December, persists: Get your coins off exchanges. Those who dismiss the harsh and unfortunate lessons of others may find themselves learning from their own expereince. We'll be here to say, "We warned you, but you didn't heed the advice."

There are people who still have a Faith upon Centralized exchange especially Tier 1 and Binance is on the top in this matter. I know some users who saying that Binance is more safe than software wallet (LOL). We use Binance only for P2P service and for daily trading purpose and for long term holding Binance is 100% risky.

A recent incident involving a Twitter user, exemplifies this. He called out Binance after his account, holding over fifteen thousand USD, was inexplicably deleted. Despite the assistance of an alleged Binance support staff in restoring the account, the coins remained missing, and the account history vanished without a trace.

Binance customer support replied on his tweets that he doesn't confirmed reactivations and chat closed before affirmation. I hope he will get back his money.

Upon scrutinizing the details related to the Case ID you've submitted, it seems our team had consented to reactivate your account at the end of our previous chat, and we were awaiting your confirmation. However, it looks like the chat was closed prior to your affirmation.



After conferring with our specialized investigation unit, we suggest you to begin a fresh chat at:

[Mrbluntzy]

Leaving asset on exchange is like keeping money in the bank, although in the bank it's more safer because if anything happens to your money the bank will take responsibility for it but if I keep my coin on crypto exchange and the exchange gets hacked, there's nothing I can do to get back my money. Is there any authority that are in charge to make those hacked exchange resend customers lost asset?

[pooya87]

Leaving asset on exchange is like keeping money in the bank, although in the bank it's more safer because if anything happens to your money the bank will take responsibility for it but if I keep my coin on crypto exchange and the exchange gets hacked, there's nothing I can do to get back my money. Is there any authority that are in charge to make those hacked exchange resend customers lost asset?

In other words it is nothing like keeping your money in a bank!!!
And your question is the biggest problem with exchanges. All those regulations the governments apply to exchanges is to only monitor user activities, not to provide them with any kind of security. Of course the exchanges give all kinds of empty promises to attract customers but in the end if they want to run away or if they get hacked, it is users that would lose money.

[Porfirii]

We could argue that this message has remained consistent through the decade, instead of the year. The problem is that no one teaches someone else's head, and it is hard to warn those who haven't suffered bankruptcies like the ones of MtGox, Cryptopia, FTX, etc.

The best practice to date, when someone has collected a few coins, is to buy a hw and be your own bank. That's the philosophy underlying all this crypto-thing, and the safest (if you don't burn your house with the keys inside) taking into account how vulnerable third parties have proved to be.

[Fiatless]

For some people who understand the risks it's a message while who are having blind trust on these CEX it's just a normal post so different perspectives but once you get into that situation and even loose few bucks you will realize the true meaning of not your keys not your coins.The best solution is to keep your coins under your possession only with seeds backup safely at secure place but if you are seeing exchange safe then go read the market news where they are going bankrupt and hacking cases are exposed.

Many people are attracted to these exchanges by bonuses and several enticing benefits that they promise. They fail to understand that these platforms are not safe but are just using these benefits to lure unsuspected investors. The advice of keeping funds in noncustodial wallets will be valid till the end of time. Not your keys, not your coins might sound simple but it is a powerful message that should be practiced judiciously.

Leaving asset on exchange is like keeping money in the bank, although in the bank it's more safer because if anything happens to your money the bank will take responsibility for it but if I keep my coin on crypto exchange and the exchange gets hacked, there's nothing I can do to get back my money. Is there any authority that are in charge to make those hacked exchange resend customers lost asset?

Many conventional banks are insured by Deposit insurance so depositors can get a refund of their deposit if the bank goes bankrupt. The government also ensure that banks comply with regulatory laws and that their accounts always go through periodic audits. But all these measures have not also stopped banks from going down the drain. Exchanges are worst and should be avoided. Keeping huge funds in exchanges is like leaving your funds in an unregulated bank. Most of the audit reports they present are not verifiable and they also engage in sharp business practices. Except hacked funds are traced and recovered depositors in exchanges will likely never get their money back.

[Learn Bitcoin]

The problem is that no one teaches someone else's head, and it is hard to warn those who haven't suffered bankruptcies like the ones of MtGox, Cryptopia, FTX, etc.

I posted this on other threads, but I will write it here again. I have been in a Bitcoin Facebook group for a year, maybe. People ask what wallet they should store their Bitcoin and other altcoins. The most common comments on those posts are from Binance and Kucoin. Whenever I try to correct them they say those are just centralized exchanges and you shouldn't store your coins where you do not have full access to your coins. Most of the time, I end up being trolled by them because their argument is that those exchanges have been running for many years and are trusted enough. Sometimes, I felt stupid because I argued with them.

People understand at some point. But I tried to convince them many times. The problem is, the number of people who understand where should store their coins is not too big. 90 peoples were suggesting Binance and 10 of was saying to use Electrum. If 90 of them start trolling 10 of us, we are nothing against them.

[Outhue]

The consistent message throughout the year, from January to December, persists: Get your coins off exchanges. Those who dismiss the harsh and unfortunate lessons of others may find themselves learning from their own expereince. We'll be here to say, "We warned you, but you didn't heed the advice." A recent incident involving a Twitter user, exemplifies this. He called out Binance after his account, holding over fifteen thousand USD, was inexplicably deleted. Despite the assistance of an alleged Binance support staff in restoring the account, the coins remained missing, and the account history vanished without a trace.
Again I say, safeguard your coins by removing them from exchanges. Do you ever trust that they will be safe there.

If you are wondering where to move your bitcoins to after taking them off exchanges, here is what Charles-Tim advises:

One of the safe way to securely hold bitcoin is the use of hardware wallet, because your bitcoin will be readily accessible for you to use unlike many other cold storage means. But you need to be careful and operate your hardware wallet with the app you will use to operate it with clean internet environment with no malware.

Hardware wallets like trezor and ledger nano are recommended, I will also recommend you to use electrum as the app you will use to operate the hardware wallet, you can download it from electrum.org.

But, irrespective of the wallet you are using, you need to operate the device in a clean internet environment in such a way the device used to operate it should contain no malware.

Clean internet environment my foot, do not go for any hardware wallet that needs the internet to transact, this is why I believe that Air-gapped devices are the best, I like hardware wallet that gives no more for PC connection, like no WIFI, no Bluetooth, no Cables, even if there is any new updates available for your hardware wallet, it's not safe to use a PC and cable because you can't know if the PC is already infected or not.

This is why I choose to go with few numbers of hardware wallet in crypto space, especially the ones that can self destruct when someone decides to tampared with them, choose your crypto hardware wallet wisely.

[lovesmayfamilis]

If this message is broadcast regularly, but you see the consequences of loss in people who did not listen to it, why do you care about them? Are your funds in order? You know that storage on centralized exchanges is not safe. You took a noble step by telling some people about the safety of their funds. But do you see a blank wall in front of you? In that case, just let people decide what to do next. Some people need their mistakes and their lessons; this way, they are remembered much better. You shouldn’t be intrusive; if people don’t hear or know how to read, life will show them its lessons. Following the nature of Bitcoin, freedom comes first.

[Lida93]

Bitcoin was purposefully created to give users financial freedom and security from the middle man, but some users after owning bitcoin they go on handing it over to the middle through the behavior of leaving their coins in centralized exchanges. At this level you don't have to feel pity for such people they knew the consequences, not that they are ignorant of previous horrid and frightful experiences of others  who were holding their coins in CEX.

The slogan, " not your keys not your coins" is a motto that rarely any crypto enthusiasts would say they have no knowledge of, how much more someone with coins worth  $15k, when exactly will people learn?.  For the CEX it's their home,  they have cleaned up all traces as simple as that and as an individual you'll have no concrete evidence to prove your allegation making any class action a step in futility.

[Lucius]

The consistent message throughout the year, from January to December, persists: Get your coins off exchanges.

To people who don't understand what Bitcoin is, it's pointless to repeat what's wrong and what's right - it's like saying something to a rock, completely meaningless. But I don't see what the problem is at all, if someone wants to entrust their property to someone else for safekeeping, let them do it.

He called out CZinance after his account, holding over fifteen thousand USD, was inexplicably deleted. Despite the assistance of an alleged CZinance support staff in restoring the account, the coins remained missing, and the account history vanished without a trace.
Again I say, safeguard your coins by removing them from exchanges. Do you ever trust that they will be safe there.

But sir, aren't the funds SAFU? If the big leader has $4.3 billion to pay for his freedom, how come he doesn't have $15k to help the poor bastard who just listened to him and kept his coins where the big leader advised him?

If you are wondering where to move your bitcoins to after taking them off exchanges, here is what Charles-Tim advises:

Hardware wallets like trezor and ledger nano are recommended...

Still advising people to use Ledger? Then I guess you agree that these same users should use the recovery feature and share their seed with Ledger and others to whom they will pay $9.99 every month for that "service"?