Why Security first before acquiring bitcoin

[Amphenomenon]

Introduction
There have been so many posts about reasons to continously buy Bitcoin especially this year, in which another bitcoin halving will happen around April. The fact is HODLing bitcoin is good but is it really the most important measures in needed in acquiring bitcoin?

What's most important at first in Acquiring bitcoin
The most important factor to consider in acquiring bitcoin is security because in the end even if you invest in bitcoin and don't protect your coins well, you will end up losing it and some reasons for security knowledge are :

• not your key not your wallet:
  I guess now we all can accept that currently majority of bitcoin investors understand this now after all the whole issues that has occurred with CEX, that the best way to store your bitcoin is with the use of Non custodian wallet.
  Among the notable year for many to believe this was 2022, during FTX crash while Nigerians last year suffered alot from the 2023 Patricia bitcoin hack and till now nothing significant has been done while alot of their customers complained how they were forced to swap their bitcoin for the exchange coin and still hasn't been able to withdraw it, while Bitcoin is increasing they are gaining nothing.
  https://twitter.com/Omikiss4/status/1729900085998461261?t=2krOoWimNzChgykX3lwYOg&s=19
  https://twitter.com/Rebecca91506507/status/1731567386455601419?t=2krOoWimNzChgykX3lwYOg&s=19
  
  
• Hack:
  We know CEX mostly fall victim of hacks, since hackers always have their eyes on them, while hacking are the most common reason and excuses CEX gives for shutting down or holding customers funds but this is not really my main focus here, Alot of Bitcoin investors has lost their coins through wallet hack, which is usually through Malware.
  
  There are so many malware like Trojan, keylogger, Ransome and others while some are more dangerous than others like the Keylogger, Ransome and Trojan malware. The most common ways people are affected by this are through phishing scam, site they visit or application they downloaded and this is why it is advisable to use ad blocker and be cautious of the site you visit and where you download applications and files and not clicking random links from strangers.
  Many Bitcoin investors have lost their bitcoin through their being device hack and this is not through visiting or downloading from malicious website but also downloading bitcoin wallet app update or any other update which is actually malicious like we saw with Electrum wallet
  
  
• Staking reward and Cloud mining:
  In the early days of Bitcoin adoption, cloud mining was the most common scam while it is now less common to fall into since Many have been victimised by it, I see it more as a ponzi schemes, even we Nigerians have had our share on this with ponzi schemes so common in the country now, cloud mining as been the best method in recent times since bitcoin and crypto currency as been gaining ground in the country and as the next halving is on the way this year, we are expecting another to overflow the Internet.
  
  The fact is Bitcoin naturally has no staking rewards since its uses the POW mechanism but many CEX offers this feature were by customers can earn more bitcoin by staking their coins which is enticing but is not good since if we not having the keys to our wallet then is not in our control.

Protective measure of your coins
The key measure of securing your bitcoin include :

• Use good and trusted non custodian wallet, in fact it is better to use wallet of such made only for bitcoin like Bluewallet, Electrum, Wasabi, sparrow wallet. These wallets also have UTXO/ coin control which help against dusk attack. While among the best for mobile devices are Electrum and bluewallet.
  If you want to get an hardware wallet which is currently the most secured of storing your bitcoin, get it from the right source and don't think of getting a used one, also its not also getting an hardware wallet but getting a good one and currently Tezos is like the best for hardware wallet and avoid using ledger wallet
• Getting updated version of your wallet or any other application is helpful for security but it's important to note that some updates are malicious and so you have to verify if its actually good: Protect yourself from fake wallet software (guide) or also wait for others to try it before installing it.
  Using good ad blocker, downloading from trusted sources or visiting trusted sites are good. Also avoid clicking link from randomly online even if you know the person be cautious of it
• email phishing scam has been the most common phishing scam now in cryptocurrency, one way or order data breach online is inevitable and so scammers might use this against you, in order to get you to review your seed phrase, private key or install an update of your wallet by which they will gain access to coins and steal them and so just avoid messages of such and at least do research or ask questions about it to know if it's true.
  
  
• Avoid staking your bitcoin or using cloud mining. The  best strategy to securely acquire more bitcoin is through DCA, bitcoin doesn't offer staking reward but mining rewards and if you know you can't afford to get the equipment for mining bitcoin or it is isn't profitable to you, through DCA you accumulate more bitcoin till your desire goal is achieved
   
• Avoid telling people the amount of bitcoin you have either online or offline and even if you want to introduce to bitcoin, you don't necessarily need to tell or show them, all you have before you can make someone invest in bitcoin

Other helpful threads

|	S/N|	|POST|	| AUTHOR |
|	____  __________	______________________________________________________________________ _______________
|	1	[Edu] Bitcoin Wallet UTXO and Consolidation	| Igebotz|
|	2	Bitcoin security and safety	| Charles-Tim |
|	3	Why E de important to avoid to de tell people about crypto way you get	| (1miau) Translation by Mia Chloe
|	4	Things you should know about dust	| Mia Chloe
|	5	Are hardware wallets really safe? And so is Bip39? Opinions about Ledger?	| coinomari

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[Hatchy]

~ snip

Great job, @Amphenomenon These are important facts that all Bitcoin users should know to avoid falling victim to scams. As we're all aware, scams are common in our country, especially online. As you mentioned, using a centralized exchange (CEX) to store your assets is risky because you're essentially trusting someone else to control your coins. If something goes wrong, there's a chance you won't be able to recover your funds. Remember the saying: "Not your keys, not your coins." Exchanges are primarily for trading, not long-term storage. So if you still choose to use one, it's your own risk to take.

Getting updated version of your wallet or any other application is helpful for security but it's important to note that some updates are malicious and so you have to verify if its actually good: 

Yes, it's important to regularly update our wallets to fix bugs and errors. The safest way to do this is by downloading updates from official stores. Avoid downloading software from unknown third-party sources on the internet. Every wallet has an official store where they release their updates, so make sure to install from there.

It's crucial to take this advice seriously. Many people fall victim to scams because they're unaware or haven't experienced it themselves. Some may find advice like this lengthy or boring, but remember, it won't be funny if one day you wake up to find your wallet empty.

[EL MOHA]

Great thread OP,

My addition is although hardware wallet which are cold storage method which is regarded the best are not the only way of storing bitcoin offline but you can also have a device that he never tested the online space before and use it as an airgapped device and then install wallet like electrum inside and you sign offline transactions from it like the way you do in hardware wallets and they serve same function as the hardware wallets and sometimes more secure self.

Another is one shouldn’t forget to manually back up their seedphrase offline even if you’re using hardware wallets or any cold storage. This will help you to recover your wallet back if the device gets damaged or stolen.

Also OP I see that your table isn’t well arranged maybe you can use this guide by 1miau on how to create table or you just try to quote any thread that has table and then copy the raw format there

[Benedictare]

   In any place or agencies,the issue of security is very important likewise Bitcoin your privacy and security show be what you think about first in the Bitcoin industry the security depends on you , on how you protect your private keys and sending it to a public address ,you  also need to use hardware wallet to secure your private keys, essentially USB having extra built-in security, Bitcoin security is so strong that it can't be tempered with because it uses elliptic curve cryptography and the secured hash algorithm 256 to produce public keys from  relating private keys .

[Coyster]

you  also need to use hardware wallet to secure your private keys,

The thing be say hardware wallet na offline wallet, so your keys go dey offline and if e dey offline e mean say e go dey hard for attacker to get am, but you go fit still fuck up if you dey use hardware wallet, and that is if you go lost your seed phrase wey you back up, or if another eyes go see am. Mind you say you fit also turn your electrum wallet to offline wallet and that one na if you get old device wey you no dey use, you fit turn am to airgapped device and e go dey keep your keys offline for you.

Bitcoin security is so strong

You no lie say Bitcoin network dey secure oh, but the thing be say, na you go secure the Bitcoin wey dey your own wallet.

[Amphenomenon]

you  also need to use hardware wallet to secure your private keys,

The thing be say hardware wallet na offline wallet, so your keys go dey offline and if e dey offline e mean say e go dey hard for attacker to get am, but you go fit still fuck up if you dey use hardware wallet, and that is if you go lost your seed phrase wey you back up, or if another eyes go see am. Mind you say you fit also turn your electrum wallet to offline wallet and that one na if you get old device wey you no dey use, you fit turn am to airgapped device and e go dey keep your keys offline for you.

The Airgapped device is good but it requires some technical skills to set up, there is are also risk of the device being damaged but if you properly backed up your seed phrase then it's all good and even for the hardware wallet itself, if you do not backup your seed phrase properly and then you lost or damaged it then your bitcoin can be recovered. You have to be disciplined in keeping them safe since they are physical entity, though they are offline but you still have to be cautious how you use them, device you might be connecting to them might include malware which hackers may use to steal your coins

Bitcoin security is so strong

You no lie say Bitcoin network dey secure oh, but the thing be say, na you go secure the Bitcoin wey dey your own wallet.

Cryptocurrency nor be for everybody if you know say you nor fit keep your coin safe and secure nor just invest for am bcos theft go collect am for you and even if you nor dey responsible tel protect your bitcoin and choose other investment, you still need responsibility and son in the end na for you to dey responsible or nor just invest at all.