Good bitcoin security starts with strong PC and mobile device security

[aylabadia05]

When it comes to securing your bitcoin don't forget about having good basic security practices on your laptop, desktop and mobile devices.

That means always using a VPN whenever connecting to the internet, with a good antivirus and anti-malware software, preferably connecting through your own hardware router.
These viruses and malware can be programmed to steal your personal information including crypto. Of course you never want to connect to any public Wifi connection without a VPN.

Coin security basically lies in the place where we properly store the seed phrase or private key.
A personal computer is an electronic device that can help, but it also depends on its use. If the user is careless about the computer they are using, not only coins are at risk but all important data is also at risk.

For me, using the desktop version of a bitcoin wallet can be safe if we are able to maintain it well with the aim of carrying out the process properly and correctly. Stay away from internet connections that are not necessary, I even want to be offline if the PC has a wallet there. Mobile wallet versions are better avoided for large amounts.
Using a VPN isn't bad for privacy, but using Tor is better.

[btc78]

Before I was involved with crypto, I was very careless with my devices.

I often just click on links without even being sure what was in it. If I needed to see it, I have to click on it immediately. I would also connect to public wi-fi not caring about the consequences it would bring. Now, I try to be more careful and thoughtful of what goes in and out of my phone, who is allowed to have access on my phone among other things..

[dothebeats]

Malwarebytes was good when I was still using Windows, but yea all the default stuff installed on most devices is good enough. You just need to not be dumb and install random pirated software.

Also, don't forget hardware wallets. It should pretty much be mandatory for 99% of people.

I remember creating a simple app on my PC for a game that I'm playing. I made everything on that Windows machine and made sure everything is properly coded. When I tried to run the packaged app, Windows Defender blocked the app and put it into quarantine mode. These pre-installed security systems in PCs are more than enough for an average person, and is great in detecting apps that may harm the user's device and files. Also, I don't think the average person that isn't technologically inclined can turn off these security features today unless they have to because of a requirement on some of the apps that they are using. Even still, it should be obvious that when a software is asking you to turn off your antivirus software, there is something wrong with it.

As for hardware wallets, I still believe that it's only a necessity if you are planning to stockpile on bitcoins and hold for long. If not, then a simple PC or a mobile phone is more than sufficient provided that that device isn't connected to the internet at all times or used to browse shady websites.

[oktana]

I don’t even have my wallet on my laptop because I believe that it is more easier to get hacked on a laptop than it is on a mobile device. This is because on mobile device, we spend more times with apps, and i am always certain about what app i have. But on windows, a malware can come from chrome, and that’s even where metamask and the average wallets gets connected. You may not know when you get redirected to the wrong site and won’t notice anything wrong, until someday when your balance is empty. Thought I have a software that protects my laptop really well, I don’t risk it.

[PX-Z]

That means always using a VPN whenever connecting to the internet, with a good antivirus and anti-malware software, preferably connecting through your own hardware router.

VPN has almost nothing to help regarding to safe guarding your device and funds. I agree on AV and other security stuff but VPN? Naaah. Also, good practice on using your wallet and your device, of course, is the best way to avoid malware. Especially downloading random stuff online.

[adaseb]

When it comes to mobile apps, at least with the iPhone. Each app is sandbox from another. Meaning that unless you give permission, one app cannot access the data from another app. This is why mobile phones are generally more secure compared to say someone using Windows and running executables from the shady websites.

Also phones can only run signed code. So the app needs to be approved and signed by apple for you to run it. Hence why it’s again much stronger security compared to a windows Pc.

[Despairo]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

If you talk about Average Joe want to protect their coins, then you don't have to install many software because the more software you have, the more chance you made mistake.

They don't have to install VPN, browser guard, antivirus etc etc, as long as they didn't click any unknown links, pirated software, join airdrop etc etc, they're high likely safe.

They also only need hardware wallet instead of air-gapped wallet.

[mindrust]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

If you talk about Average Joe want to protect their coins, then you don't have to install many software because the more software you have, the more chance you made mistake.

They don't have to install VPN, browser guard, antivirus etc etc, as long as they didn't click any unknown links, pirated software, join airdrop etc etc, they're high likely safe.

They also only need hardware wallet instead of air-gapped wallet.

You have made a good point.

Also we are talking about bitcoin here. You need to be above average to be able to successfully secure your coins. So when he says linux is complicated and it is for smart people while windows is for dumb people, he also admits that 99% of the population is dumb and will never successfully secure their coins.

If people insist on not learning about linux and other security practices, then somebody smarter and evil will take advantage of their stupidity. In this age not learning about linux is a choice between being stupid and smart.

On some rare occasions though, even being smart cannot help you. Even the bitcoin dev LukeDashJr got hacked and lost his coins to a thief in the past when you think about it. Sometimes we are just careless.

[blckhawk]

I don’t even have my wallet on my laptop because I believe that it is more easier to get hacked on a laptop than it is on a mobile device. This is because on mobile device, we spend more times with apps, and i am always certain about what app i have. But on windows, a malware can come from chrome, and that’s even where metamask and the average wallets gets connected. You may not know when you get redirected to the wrong site and won’t notice anything wrong, until someday when your balance is empty. Thought I have a software that protects my laptop really well, I don’t risk it.

I'm doing the same thing, but for me though, the risk is all similar anyway, if the hacker or whatever malicious entity is trying to attack you specifically, they'll always find a way to get to you and we can't anything about it. The phone that I use for my wallet for my bitcoin storage is pretty much split into different phones, I got one of those phones that have a second device feature, I haven't tried using that to store my bitcoins but I hope others here have tried this and would it be advisable to store it there. I also use Brave browser if you want to avoid accidentally downloading malwares when you're visiting websites, another thing that can help you if you don't want to unknowingly download malwares is to buy your subscriptions to anime, don't download stuff that's on those free anime streaming website and stop watching porn, this last one, you will prevent yourself from getting them malwares and you become a better person too in terms of how your brain is wired.

[headingnorth]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

If you talk about Average Joe want to protect their coins, then you don't have to install many software because the more software you have, the more chance you made mistake.

They don't have to install VPN, browser guard, antivirus etc etc, as long as they didn't click any unknown links, pirated software, join airdrop etc etc, they're high likely safe.

They also only need hardware wallet instead of air-gapped wallet.

Not to have even the most basic computer security like antivirus and browser protection, VPN, etc seems pretty crazy to me.

You want to avoid public wifi as much as possible but it is not always possible if you need to do some work or access the internet while traveling,
that is what VPN is for so hackers can't steal your data. If you use wifi at home or share wifi with others at home I would consider using VPN for that also.

[GbitG]

The simplest and the most secure way is not to keep your Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in devices that you use daily and are often connected to the internet because no matter how many antiviruses and security precautions you take, there can always be a way for those malware and viruses to get access to important stuff in your device and you wouldn't even know about it if you are always connected to the internet and use a lot of programs and software on it.

So the best way, as others have suggested it as well, is to either use a hardware wallet or a device that you specifically use to keep your cryptocurrencies and you never connect it to the internet so that your wallets and backups and everything stay safe and out of the reach of attackers and exploiters.
You won't have any worries if you are not having any important stuff in your personal use device whether it's a mobile phone, a laptop, or a pc.

[arwin100]

The simplest and the most secure way is not to keep your Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in devices that you use daily and are often connected to the internet because no matter how many antiviruses and security precautions you take, there can always be a way for those malware and viruses to get access to important stuff in your device and you wouldn't even know about it if you are always connected to the internet and use a lot of programs and software on it.

So the best way, as others have suggested it as well, is to either use a hardware wallet or a device that you specifically use to keep your cryptocurrencies and you never connect it to the internet so that your wallets and backups and everything stay safe and out of the reach of attackers and exploiters.
You won't have any worries if you are not having any important stuff in your personal use device whether it's a mobile phone, a laptop, or a pc.

Maybe they find it to hassle for not using their device since not everyone have capabilities to buy multiple devices just to secure their assets.

But the least they can do is not to click any random links and don't use their main wallet to connect on platforms or anything questionable for them to avoid getting compromise we know to many schemes has been done by those criminals and we need to be more careful and knowledgeable on to good to be true schemes to avoid getting take advantage by those people who are greedy to do anything just to get easy money for theirselves.

To many good suggestion above so for its up for people to be knowledgeable individual to avoid this hackings and exploitation.

[kryptqnick]

Anti-malware software on a device you use to access Bitcoin is a very sound idea. The need of it depends on your OS, though, right? With Windows, it's highly desirable, but maybe it's not as important if you're using Linux.
Being careful online, such as not downloading things you aren't sure of and not clicking on unfamiliar links someone sends you, are also good basic things. As for VPN, I think it's more about privacy than about security. I use it occasionally, but I don't think it's related much to using or not using Bitcoin.

[headingnorth]

.
Being careful online, such as not downloading things you aren't sure of and not clicking on unfamiliar links someone sends you, are also good basic things. As for VPN, I think it's more about privacy than about security. I use it occasionally, but I don't think it's related much to using or not using Bitcoin.

Sometimes people click on links by mistake that appear perfectly legitimate but turns out to be a fake website that installs very dangerous viruses and malware.
Security software such as Malwarebytes browser extension will block you from visiting such websites.

If you type in a URL of a well-known legitimate website, but mistype it by one letter you could be directed to a fake website that looks exactly like the real thing.
That is how people accidentally download malware, viruses, keyloggers that can record all your keystrokes, etc that steals your personal and financial information including your passwords.
That could lead to catastrophe for you. In such a situation a hardware wallet alone will not save you. It doesn't matter if you have Linux or whatever operating system you are screwed.

Unless you are a robot that never makes a mistake and never makes a typo it is foolish to believe that you are perfect and will never make a simple human error.

[Assface16678]

The simplest and the most secure way is not to keep your Bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in devices that you use daily and are often connected to the internet because no matter how many antiviruses and security precautions you take, there can always be a way for those malware and viruses to get access to important stuff in your device and you wouldn't even know about it if you are always connected to the internet and use a lot of programs and software on it.

So the best way, as others have suggested it as well, is to either use a hardware wallet or a device that you specifically use to keep your cryptocurrencies and you never connect it to the internet so that your wallets and backups and everything stay safe and out of the reach of attackers and exploiters.
You won't have any worries if you are not having any important stuff in your personal use device whether it's a mobile phone, a laptop, or a pc.

Maybe they find it to hassle for not using their device since not everyone have capabilities to buy multiple devices just to secure their assets.

But the least they can do is not to click any random links and don't use their main wallet to connect on platforms or anything questionable for them to avoid getting compromise we know to many schemes has been done by those criminals and we need to be more careful and knowledgeable on to good to be true schemes to avoid getting take advantage by those people who are greedy to do anything just to get easy money for theirselves.

To many good suggestion above so for its up for people to be knowledgeable individual to avoid this hackings and exploitation.

Exactly, but even without clicking a link, your assets can also be compromised. The thing is, there are many ways a hacker could do in order to steal anything from their victims. Just by surfing the Internet, you could be affected by viruses or malware. If you want to be secured, then don't even visit websites that have suspicious looks and suspicious website links. In this advanced technology, it is very hard to secure our assets or reputation. That is why it will be a good option to have a second device wherein there is your OTP SIMcard. It's like your treasure vault. You need to secure that device very carefully, and you are the one who knows its existence and where you will hide it. Also a good option is the use of a VPN, or virtual private network. It will make your searching on the internet more secure, especially for harmful or malicious links and websites.

[South Park]

When you want to talk about "strong PC" it means you're need avoid to use bad OS like Windows or Mac, start to use Linux. It's the first thing you need to do, using wrong OS make the further steps wrong too.

VPN isn't good choice if you want to protect privacy, use Tor.

Google DNS is bad too, didn't you forget if Google is the company that combat against privacy?

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

There is not really much to learn, installing one of the many Linux distributions is more simple than installing Windows these days, as all the drivers and most common applications are installed by default when you install the OS, and even if it was true that decades ago you needed to use the terminal for almost everything, this is not true anymore, and you can install, remove and use the majority of the software through a GUI, which most users should be extremely familiar with already.

[PX-Z]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

There is not really much to learn, installing one of the many Linux distributions is more simple than installing Windows these days, as all the drivers and most common applications are installed by default when you install the OS, and even if it was true that decades ago you needed to use the terminal for almost everything, this is not true anymore, and you can install, remove and use the majority of the software through a GUI, which most users should be extremely familiar with already.

This is true. And that's one of the misconception of having linux as there desktop main OS. The pros of mac and windows are only because of its UI and looks, while most linux distros are more in simplicity and speed but some of them already good UI. And some of these OS are beginner friendly like Linux, MX Mint, Ubunto, Zorin, many to mention.

[headingnorth]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

There is not really much to learn, installing one of the many Linux distributions is more simple than installing Windows these days, as all the drivers and most common applications are installed by default when you install the OS, and even if it was true that decades ago you needed to use the terminal for almost everything, this is not true anymore, and you can install, remove and use the majority of the software through a GUI, which most users should be extremely familiar with already.

This is true. And that's one of the misconception of having linux as there desktop main OS. The pros of mac and windows are only because of its UI and looks, while most linux distros are more in simplicity and speed but some of them already good UI. And some of these OS are beginner friendly like Linux, MX Mint, Ubunto, Zorin, many to mention.

I think Linux has the reputation of something that is used only by developers and hard-core tech geeks. That is why few non-tech people will touch it or even know what it is.

To learn a whole new operating system that is not very well known to the mainstream is daunting for most people. That is because everyone grew up learning computers on Mac and Windows since  those are the only two operating systems that are widely used in the education system. For better or worse Windows and Mac have a suffocating monopoly in the education system. Since virtually every child learned to use a computer through Mac or Windows it is just easier to keep using what you are familiar with as you grow older. They also have a monopoly in retail because 99% of computers sold are preloaded with Mac or Windows so you would have to go out of your way to even find a Linux computer to buy.

When you walk into any computer retailer all you see are Windows and Mac products on display for you to see and try out.
It is hard for Linux to be competitive when no one can even see or touch your product before buying it.

[Outhue]

When it comes to securing your bitcoin don't forget about having good basic security practices on your laptop, desktop and mobile devices.

That means always using a VPN whenever connecting to the internet, with a good antivirus and anti-malware software, preferably connecting through your own hardware router.
These viruses and malware can be programmed to steal your personal information including crypto. Of course, you never want to connect to any public Wifi connection without a VPN.

Good basic security is much to ask for, this is something that many people don't know about, in my family alone I am the only one who knows how to keep a PC safe from malicious traps and all my family members do ask me for guidance, I meant every one of them.

This was how I knew that not everyone will have time to learn this things to keep themselves safe when using a PC, the only advice I give them was to never run a crypto wallet on their PC, because I won't always be available to solve their problems, since hackers are getting smarter every day, they might find a better way to steal data from PC at any time.

To be safe with a PC do not keep any information on it, onlg use it to solve the web and do some work that has no connection with money or a bank account because at this rate we can't outsmart getting hacked or getting viruses or other, we can only limit the chances.

[legendbtc]

Linux may be better for security than Mac or Windows but learning to use it is not feasible for the average person which is 99% of the population.

There is not really much to learn, installing one of the many Linux distributions is more simple than installing Windows these days, as all the drivers and most common applications are installed by default when you install the OS, and even if it was true that decades ago you needed to use the terminal for almost everything, this is not true anymore, and you can install, remove and use the majority of the software through a GUI, which most users should be extremely familiar with already.

This is true. And that's one of the misconception of having linux as there desktop main OS. The pros of mac and windows are only because of its UI and looks, while most linux distros are more in simplicity and speed but some of them already good UI. And some of these OS are beginner friendly like Linux, MX Mint, Ubunto, Zorin, many to mention.

I think Linux has the reputation of something that is used only by developers and hard-core tech geeks. That is why few non-tech people will touch it or even know what it is.

To learn a whole new operating system that is not very well known to the mainstream is daunting for most people. That is because everyone grew up learning computers on Mac and Windows since  those are the only two operating systems that are widely used in the education system. For better or worse Windows and Mac have a suffocating monopoly in the education system. Since virtually every child learned to use a computer through Mac or Windows it is just easier to keep using what you are familiar with as you grow older. They also have a monopoly in retail because 99% of computers sold are preloaded with Mac or Windows so you would have to go out of your way to even find a Linux computer to buy.

When you walk into any computer retailer all you see are Windows and Mac products on display for you to see and try out.
It is hard for Linux to be competitive when no one can even see or touch your product before buying it.

Let's look at reality and evaluate what's going on. If Linux is really so easy to use and so good, why do the majority of computers in the world use Windows and Mac? We even have to spend money to buy the other two operating systems, while Linux is completely free.

Also, if we use Linux, is there a guarantee that our bitcoins will never be stolen or attacked by hackers? What percentage is guaranteed that using Linux will never be attacked by hackers? Don't worry too much about the computer factors we use, what operating system, what brand of computer, the most important thing is how we use it.