How to safeguard my crypto in Andriod Phone

[Supreme Donvic]

Well I will say it is better that way if you can afford to buy another phone that you won't be using all you have to do is to keep it and store all your information there however it is good but it has disadvantage, something happened to me years ago I had two phones one I was not using I just kept it and a family friend of mine came to my house and was able to access my room and took the phone where I hide it, some weeks later I decided to take the phone and do something with it when I checked where I kept it I did not see it again and I started looking for it, it was my little sister that told me that my family friend entered my room and I confronted him that was when he told me that he was the one that took it so it is still very risky to do such.

[Lontor]

our hardware wallet has vulnerability in its very system OS that's the end, your coins aren't safe.

Android OS is the operating system, and if something can make hackers to get into your phone storage through the Android chip, no manners of offline securing can keep you safe at that point.

Can you tell actual cases where an android device itself was compromised and led to a wallet being hacked? As far as i know, there aren't many confirmed cases like that. Android gets regular security patches every few months, so the risk is relatively low, unless you're still using very old versions like android 9 worst below.

In most situations, losses don't come from the system being hacked directly, but from phishing and social engineering where the most of scams and wallet hacks actually happen.

Yes there was few and they got patched, someone created a topic about it on this forum, it has something to do with Mediatek chips, the vulnerability was inside the chip, those who find that backdoor can do anything with thw phone running on that Mediatek chip, sorry I can't find the topic again.

[promise444c5]

Not sure  if anyone mentioned this already..  
Keep your device up to date, it helps to some extent but phone isn’t really a reliable source. Keep just few hundred bucks on it.

So far you aren’t doing anything that will invite malware or expose you to phishing then you should be safe but just incase.. Don’t rely on it .

Yes there was few and they got patched, someone created a topic about it on this forum, it has something to do with Mediatek chips, the vulnerability was inside the chip, those who find that backdoor can do anything with thw phone running on that Mediatek chip, sorry I can't find the topic again.

You mean this.. Vulnerability for Andoid wallets (physical access), he posted under it so he’s aware..

Btw, that one needs physical access to do some exploits.. all extract needs to be carried out before the system startup. It’s a fast one though, under a minute  :- from the article.

[Berry2d]

Well I will say it is better that way if you can afford to buy another phone that you won't be using all you have to do is to keep it and store all your information there however it is good but it has disadvantage, something happened to me years ago I had two phones one I was not using I just kept it and a family friend of mine came to my house and was able to access my room and took the phone where I hide it, some weeks later I decided to take the phone and do something with it when I checked where I kept it I did not see it again and I started looking for it, it was my little sister that told me that my family friend entered my room and I confronted him that was when he told me that he was the one that took it so it is still very risky to do such.

Getting and keeping a phone without use is never the best way to safeguard our private informations in android phones, just as mentioned above as we never can tell when something strange we happen to the hidden phone we claimed to have been saved.
One serious thing  we must not forget about phones is that it is call hand set and not public set, so we must learn how to make our phones our private property and not a public one because I think that is the easiest way to safeguard our privacy without complain. To keep our informations save, we most be watchful and observant enough to prevent an enemy from gaining access to those special information.

[abaeze]

Well, every now and then I hear that it is unsafe to keep a wallet on a mobile phone, especially the phones that we are using for day-to-day basis as a daily driver. So what can be done to secure our funds on Unstoppable and other Android wallets?

Since you are looking for a way to keep the wallet safe on your mobile phone, then your idea is not bad, but of course you have to take some precautions when using it, especially when it comes to network and also offline problems. If someone from your family tries to use the phone from where you left it, because maybe if someone takes the phone and tries to use it, they may not even know what is in it. And even if there is no such problem, then the wallet inside the mobile can be insecure. When you suddenly connect to the internet or log in with an internet connection for assets accumulation or transfer, then different types of OTP for fund transfer can weaken your security.

[MadSl1m]

The cheap-phone idea has some holes.
Cheap Androids have shipped with preinstalled malware multiple times - BLU phones back in 2016, various budget brands since then. Cheapest is the wrong filter for something that holds keys.
"Offline most of the time" isn't really offline either. The moment it joins WiFi to broadcast a tx, it's online. Less online is not air-gapped.
If you want to sign offline and receive by address, that's a hardware wallet. Trezor or Ledger Nano S Plus is around $60-80, less than most second-hand phones. Coldcard if you want true air-gap (QR or SD card only, never plugged in).
For phone wallets like Unstoppable, treat it like cash in your pocket. Real stack stays on the hardware wallet.
You're right that receiving doesn't need the signer online - watch-only with the xpub handles balance and receive addresses.

[BlackBoss_]

Since you are looking for a way to keep the wallet safe on your mobile phone, then your idea is not bad, but of course you have to take some precautions when using it, especially when it comes to network and also offline problems. If someone from your family tries to use the phone from where you left it, because maybe if someone takes the phone and tries to use it, they may not even know what is in it.

Storing your bitcoin in a smart phone is a risky practice and it's only recommended to do that with small fund and surely the phone is your personal phone. In your example, that smart phone looks like a public smart phone for all your family members as everyone in your family can use the phone without your agreement.

If your phone can be not only accessed but used this way by all family members, it's very dangerous if you store your bitcoins in phone. Assume you can not change practice of the other people, let's change yours first.

[Muba20]

One option i have in mind is to buy one additional cheap phones and install our wallets in that phone and keep that phone offline most of the time and make it online only when you need to send the funds. We don't need the wallet to be online for receiving funds if we know the deposit address.

Is this a secure way, or maybe we have better ways?

Undoubtedly, if a new phone is used offline than the phone used in daily life, the security of the wallet on that phone will be higher than other phones. The phone where various types of apps are used constantly may be more vulnerable to malware attacks. Malware can easily enter due to the installation of various types of apps. But a phone that does not have any apps and is used only when necessary is definitely safer than a phone used daily.

But if you try to use a hardware wallet from an overall perspective, then it is the safest. Hardware wallets are made in such a way that the user is more secure. The wallet is made in such a way that there is no damage to the wallet when exposed to the internet. Hardware wallets are definitely the most suitable for long-term holding with security. While that wallet is safe for those who use a separate phone in offline, a hardware wallet is much safer for long-term Bitcoin holding.

[satscraper]

Even though using a separate device like that may seem safe, to me it feels better to just get a proper wallet instead of spending money to buy another device. But above everything and keeping your security phrase safe is the most important thing. The device we use daily is mostly used for browsing and through that browsing we sometimes fall into spam. So I think it’s better not to use the device where you keep your wallets for too much browsing.

But you probably have an old device gathering dust, don’t you? Such old Android phone can easily be turned into device comparable to common hardware wallets. I’ve already mentioned  AirGap technique that can do this. Recently I found a new one called Cupcake, which can achieve the same thing at the equivalent level.

[HONDACD125]

Well, every now and then I hear that it is unsafe to keep a wallet on a mobile phone, especially the phones that we are using for day-to-day basis as a daily driver. So what can be done to secure our funds on Unstoppable and other Android wallets?

One option i have in mind is to buy one additional cheap phones and install our wallets in that phone and keep that phone offline most of the time and make it online only when you need to send the funds. We don't need the wallet to be online for receiving funds if we know the deposit address.

Is this a secure way, or maybe we have better ways?

That should do the work, obviously. As long as you are not using your device for every day use and aren't downloading apps and games, surfing the internet every hour, scrolling through social media and maybe clicking links sometimes, then you should be okay. The only thing that could put your funds at risk is the negligence of where you download the wallet from. If you are careful and you do it from the right source, you should be all good, but if you are not careful about that then you could get in trouble, which happens sometimes because an iPhone user got scammed this way and he lost all his life-savings.

So, taking precautions such as using a separate device only for your wallet and funds if you know they are significant enough is a good thing, but we should remember that the security of our funds is totally dependent on our own understanding of things and how careful we generally are with things. I have been using my Electrum wallet on my android phone for years without any problems. Of course, I don't keep large amounts in it but I usually have funds in it, and never faced any problems at all, and I use the phone for literally everything.

[OcTradism]

That should do the work, obviously. As long as you are not using your device for every day use and aren't downloading apps and games, surfing the internet every hour, scrolling through social media and maybe clicking links sometimes, then you should be okay. The only thing that could put your funds at risk is the negligence of where you download the wallet from. If you are careful and you do it from the right source, you should be all good, but if you are not careful about that then you could get in trouble, which happens sometimes because an iPhone user got scammed this way and he lost all his life-savings.

My practice with my phone are like following.

I self limit applications installed on my phone to as least as possible. The more applications I install on my phone, the less secure I feel and it's not just my personal feeling, it's actual risk. I maintain this principle and practice even I don't store bitcoin or cryptocurrencies in my phone.

If I store bitcoins and cryptocurrencies on my phone, I will store small fund as my hot wallet only. Big funds will never be stored on phone because I am not ready to lose big funds by carelessly stored it in a hot wallet and bring my phone around.

Games, I don't play games and if my phone has fund there, I don't want to use my phone for interactions with many websites exclusively gaming websites.
Security and Privacy Encyclopedia.

[pawanjain]

Well, every now and then I hear that it is unsafe to keep a wallet on a mobile phone, especially the phones that we are using for day-to-day basis as a daily driver. So what can be done to secure our funds on Unstoppable and other Android wallets?

One option i have in mind is to buy one additional cheap phones and install our wallets in that phone and keep that phone offline most of the time and make it online only when you need to send the funds. We don't need the wallet to be online for receiving funds if we know the deposit address.

Is this a secure way, or maybe we have better ways?

Any device that is connected to the internet is risky and this is the only reason why many people mention that keeping your crypto on a phone is very risky.
But I have been holding my crypto on my phone but haven't faced any issues yet even though I don't recommend this.
I only keep a small amount of my holdings on my phone though so that I can make any transactions quickly if I want.
It's better to keep your large holdings on a separate wallet which is not connected to the internet to be on the safer side.

[Queen uloma]

Using separate phones that would serve as wallet device can reduce risks compared to using your daily phone that is exposed to many apps and links. When you Keep your phone off-line sometimes is a way of protecting your phone from hackers. because hackers can’t access your phone when your internet isn’t connected. But even with this method you just need to be very careful. The most important thing is your seed phrase. If someone mistakenly see your recovery phrase, all your funds are gone. even when you’re offline. So your seed phrase is supposed to be stored offline not in screenshot, cloud storage or notes.

[macson]

Undoubtedly, if a new phone is used offline than the phone used in daily life, the security of the wallet on that phone will be higher than other phones. The phone where various types of apps are used constantly may be more vulnerable to malware attacks. Malware can easily enter due to the installation of various types of apps. But a phone that does not have any apps and is used only when necessary is definitely safer than a phone used daily.

Still, as long as the cellphone has parts such as Bluetooth, cellular, and other parts that allow it to stay connected to the network, it still cannot be said to be completely safe because certain actions can make it vulnerable to remote access, or anything that makes it possible to be intercepted. But, keeping one device offline is better than leaving it connected to the internet.

But if you try to use a hardware wallet from an overall perspective, then it is the safest. Hardware wallets are made in such a way that the user is more secure. The wallet is made in such a way that there is no damage to the wallet when exposed to the internet. Hardware wallets are definitely the most suitable for long-term holding with security. While that wallet is safe for those who use a separate phone in offline, a hardware wallet is much safer for long-term Bitcoin holding.

It depends on the hardware wallet, as not all are trustworthy. Ledger is a hardware wallet, but it lost its reputation when it stored its seed phrase with a company. Trezor might be a good option to consider for securing your Bitcoin.

[Johnlomape]

Well I will say it is better that way if you can afford to buy another phone that you won't be using all you have to do is to keep it and store all your information there however it is good but it has disadvantage, something happened to me years ago I had two phones one I was not using I just kept it and a family friend of mine came to my house and was able to access my room and took the phone where I hide it, some weeks later I decided to take the phone and do something with it when I checked where I kept it I did not see it again and I started looking for it, it was my little sister that told me that my family friend entered my room and I confronted him that was when he told me that he was the one that took it so it is still very risky to do such.

There is no need to do that because it's not all investors that are rich or have the money to get more than one phone just because they want to keep their wallet information save from the public. There are people that are using a single device and they have no problem with getting hacked or scammed online. I see greed as the only factor that can make a person to lose access to his wallet which can be as a result of clicking phishing links that must have made an hacker to have access to the device of the victim.

[snowpega]

Well, every now and then I hear that it is unsafe to keep a wallet on a mobile phone, especially the phones that we are using for day-to-day basis as a daily driver. So what can be done to secure our funds on Unstoppable and other Android wallets?

One option i have in mind is to buy one additional cheap phones and install our wallets in that phone and keep that phone offline most of the time and make it online only when you need to send the funds. We don't need the wallet to be online for receiving funds if we know the deposit address.

Is this a secure way, or maybe we have better ways?

Hmm, this can be a good way to keep your assets secure by staying away from online space. For a long time, I have also been facing some kind of attacks on my mobile phone, and the type of attack is a Trojan virus. But I still don't know the source of this attack, like from which direction I am being attacked. Every app I am using on my mobile Phone is directly installed from the Play Store, and I don't have any unknown and useless applications in my mobile phone. But still, it is so strange that I am facing such attacks.

If you can afford buying an extra cheap phone, wouldn't it be better to just invest into a proper hardware wallet? The Trezor safe 3 costs 59$ while the Trezor safe 5 costs 129$.

But to answer your question,  everything goes down to your habits. If you're too much into the web3 space (checking new projects, looking into potential airdrops, testing new products, etc).. You're more prone to getting hacked compared to the person who just opens his wallet to send funds.

Overall I'd say:

- Ignore DMs on Telegram and discord
- Never link your wallet (again if you're into web3) to any website you don't know.
- Avoid downloading things from unknown sources.

Really a nice piece of advice. Can you give me any suggestions by reading the problem written above? Like, what can be the reason for this attack, even though I don't reply to any random user? I haven't installed Discord on my mobile phone. I am not joining any Web3 project right now. I don't even click on any unknown link on my mobile phone. And every app I have on my mobile phone is directly installed from the Google Play Store.

[DYOR+BTC]

Don't use a android phone to keep large amount of money or Bitcoin.

If you can store a thousand dollars in a hot wallet you can afford a hardware wallet, what are you waiting for?
For something to go wrong first before you can consider a hardware wallet?

Zero your mind away from android phones, they aren't the best for safeguarding your digital assets.
Someone who can even DCA $50 into Bitcoin can afford a hardware wallet.

Having one is a good start for your digital assets future, don't play with it.

Looking at the working principles of android phones, I think it has an upgraded security settings that helps in safeguarding once information from getting outside to others, so why you are seriously advising people not to use android phones to save informations is what I think you need to help me elaborate more about because in as much as security is consigned,  in know android phones has serious security that can safeguard once information from reaching out to others.