Why security practices should be your everyday norm

[YellowSwap]

Someone close to me believed firmly that airgapped devices neutralised all possible threats in crypto space, it was a long discussion  and argument, he was so confident about it, and this got me asking how many people believed the same thing.

I am here to tell you that threats still lingers, even if you do everything right.

Here are two threats that you should know about

1) criminals don't know how to stop to get what they want, even if your device is offline they can still exploit sophisticated methods to breach airgapped device, it's called remote hacking attempts.

2) This is the main one that I want to talk about, its called insider threat

Am I the only one who thinks that a insider with access to the system can introduce some sabotage operations bypassing the air gap? Those who make it can also break it.

Don't relax too much because you are using a airgapped device to keep your coins, they still remain at risk and it's important to implement better security practices to limit potential threats.

[(BTC)]

2) This is the main one that I want to talk about, its called insider threat

Am I the only one who thinks that a insider with access to the system can introduce some sabotage operations bypassing the air gap? Those who make it can also break it.

This line reminds me of:

Technological, personal, and legal threats must be assessed when considering which storage option to select:

You're definitely right about the whole "not relaxing" part all because one uses airgap. There are attack vectors all over the place, and there are solutions all over the place. It's a never-ending cycle. It's fascinating and beautiful, but similarly annoying and scary. The best thing I like to encourage people in the real world, is to make sure security is practiced hand-in-hand with current scope of know-how. Overcomplicating your security beyond one's ability due to a mixture of overconfidence/paranoia when it comes to managing private keys can be a recipe for disaster. One time I had to convince someone who legitimately thought getting a small tattoo of their private key on a...private...part of their body was a bad, bad, bad idea. I wish I was joking.

[BattleDog]

Airgapped does not mean "immune", it means you moved the attack surface somewhere less convenient. A proper airgap kills a lot of lazy remote attack paths, but the moment you move data in or out with USB, SD card, QR codes, printer, camera, firmware update, seed backup, unsigned transaction file, or some "trusted" helper machine, you have a bridge. Humans still touch it... They still have to cross that bridge. Besides, what if you encounter a bridge troll?

I have seen people do absurdly careful offline signing and then keep the seed phrase in a desk drawer next to old SIM cards and coffee receipts. Congratulations, you built Fort Knox and left the janitor's window open.

The insider threat part is very real too, but I'd stretch it wider than just "someone with access can sabotage it". Supply chain, tampered hardware, bad wallet builds, fake updates, poisoned dependencies, malicious browser extensions on the online machine, clipboard stealers, QR substitution, bad entropy, evil maid attacks, backup theft, coercion, shoulder surfing, and plain old exhaustion can all be part of the same circus. You do not need Hollywood remote hacking if the user signs the wrong transaction because the online machine lied nicely.

One underrated risk is transaction review. A cold wallet can sign exactly what it is shown, but if the human does not verify the destination, amount, chain, contract call, or displayed data on a trusted screen, then the airgap is just ceremony. This matters even more with DeFi and smart contract interactions. Signing a simple BTC transaction is one thing. Blind-signing some contract vomit on an EVM chain because the dApp said "confirm" is a completely different animal. That is where a lot of people get skinned while proudly saying they used hardware wallets.

The boring answer is still the correct one: layered security, reproducible builds where possible, verified downloads, clean signing machine, watch-only wallet, small test sends, multisig for serious amounts, geographically separated backups, no seed photos, no cloud notes, no "temporary" copies, and no heroic trust in one magic device.

Airgap is a strong tool, but it is not holy water.

[Majestic-milf]

 The only thing that is certain and sure is death, nothing else is,so that's why when you see rich men putting up biometric scanners that to protect something valuable and that only them can have access to, they still make provisions for an alternative should their first and most secured option fail. People don't just take precautions because they're paranoid, but so that thru won't be taken unawares.
There's nothing like "too much" when it comes to securing your coins cause you can't afford to take chances with them, knowing how much it took for you to acquire them so I agree with the Op, it's not out of place to safeguard and enforce security.

[Aanuoluwatofunmi]

Security check is very important in Bitcoin network because once we are slack about this aspects, others will take advantage of us and claim our coins that should be in our position, we need to be informed as well as taking the necessary steps or measures about security, this begins with how we maintain privacy and avoid others knowing about what we do or gaining access to some of our sensitive information in Bitcoin.

[tbct_mt2]

Am I the only one who thinks that a insider with access to the system can introduce some sabotage operations bypassing the air gap? Those who make it can also break it.

Air gap is the best but you're right that people make their air gap devices and they can change those devices to non air gapped if they want. Fortunately, people who actually have an air gapped device, truly remove hardware parts that are necessary for connecting that device to Internet. They can plug those hardware pieces back to the device but it is inconvenient. It's at least as barrier to prevent people's careless practice, unlike people think air gap is as simple as turn off Internet connection is enough.

People who wrongly think air gap device is like turn-off Internet connection will have higher probability of connecting that device with the Internet again.

Don't relax too much because you are using a airgapped device to keep your coins, they still remain at risk and it's important to implement better security practices to limit potential threats.

Security practice is long term, and it never stops, except if you have an air gapped device and keep it like that over time. Anything interacts with the Internet an online resources have a lot of security risks.

[Yamane_Keto]

Airgapped is weak or vulnerable to hacking due to misuse or how the system is built. If built correctly, it will be secure.

Weaknesses can occur either when Airgapped connects to the internet in any way or when the wallet has low entropy. Both are related to user behavior, not the system itself.

[KiaKia]

There are too many things that can go wrong with a airgapped hardware wallet and it's all mostly the users fault

With QR code everything can go wrong, hackers can manipulate QR codes to trick you into signing unintended transactions, so don't scan any QR codes you see online.

Bluetooth and NFC exploits also exits and this is why I don't like any hardware wallets that have Bluetooth or NFC, these wireless signals can also be intercepted or jammed, manipulating transaction is highly possible here.

A malicious firmware update is also possible, which is why I recommend not rushing to update your hardware wallet, always give it time before updating.

[Cookdata]

Someone close to me believed firmly that airgapped devices neutralised all possible threats in crypto space, it was a long discussion  and argument, he was so confident about it, and this got me asking how many people believed the same thing.

I am here to tell you that threats still lingers, even if you do everything right.

Here are two threats that you should know about

1) criminals don't know how to stop to get what they want, even if your device is offline they can still exploit sophisticated methods to breach airgapped device, it's called remote hacking attempts.

I will have to disagree with this.

Do you know why some people don't like to use internet for communication in this modern age? Because any info transfer via internet can be remotely access if it's not properly done especially if it's not encrypted. This is why some offices(governments) don't like to send sensitive data through the internet , they still prefer old methods to send and receive information.

A proper airgaped wallet is a wallet that is completely isolated from the internet and not just that, any form of communication are absent, no wifi, no Bluetooth, this makes it difficult for anyone to tempered with it, this makes an airgap wallet one of the best cold storage than other hardware wallets that need internet to function,  this makes airgaped wallet very hard to be remotely accessed or hack.

2) This is the main one that I want to talk about, its called insider threat

Am I the only one who thinks that a insider with access to the system can introduce some sabotage operations bypassing the air gap? Those who make it can also break it.

Don't relax too much because you are using a airgapped device to keep your coins, they still remain at risk and it's important to implement better security practices to limit potential threats.

An airgaped wallet is your personal stuff, its suppose to be hidden from people. If you make it available, anyone close to you can temper with it. A DIY airgap wallet that you probably never connected to an internet can be accessed by anyone close to you. The best thing you can do is hide it and protect it from been accessed.

[5W-KILO]

It has never happened that a hardware wallet company is responsible for stealing it's users assets by intentionally upload a malicious firmware update to their users, never.

But anything is possible, by the way, anyone who is interested in buying a airgapped wallet must do the following.

1. You must buy the device from the manufacturer direct. (Avoid third-party sellers or merchants at all cost.)
2. Check for any tamper evidence right after you received the wallet, there should be a seal or other way to check authencity.
3. Download firmware online from official sources, don't click on firmware updates through links sent by emails.
4. Always triple check your recipient addresses and the amount you want to send before signing the transaction.
5. If your hardware wallet has Bluetooth, make sure you turn it off unless it's important, don't know why hardware wallets still got one.

Keep your device offline always and always be on guide with your device, security practice is forever, no ending.

[Zaguru12]

It has never happened that a hardware wallet company is responsible for stealing it's users assets by intentionally upload a malicious firmware update to their users, never.

The right statement to actually use would be that there have been no proven cases where it was the companies that actually updated a malicious firmware to it’s users, something related has definitely happened like the ledger supply chain attacks that happened one time like that when code was updated to its connect kit and it was then said that it’s a ledger employee that feel for a phishing link. How are we sure it’s the truth and not the employ intentionally doing that?

I think many of this similar attacks have definitely happened in the past although it was blamed on employees been compromised.

This is the major reason why you see most people do not rush to update their firmware when updated by the company.

Airgapped device for me remains the very best option for a good wallet if it is set up properly and used properly but it’s not immune to lose too and that’s if there is vulnerable gap left by the user

[ZAINmalik75]

To be honest, it sounds like a movie plot, but the vulnerabilities he mentioned are standard threats with some very fancy names though. Although we can create an air gapped wallet at home, that requires technical skills, and tutorials have already been shared here. Staying this paranoid is not good for health, but in security sectors it is true that we have to assume that any part of the chain could be targeted and we could be hacked through a door we would never imagine.

One time I had to convince someone who legitimately thought getting a small tattoo of their private key on a...private...part of their body was a bad, bad, bad idea. I wish I was joking.

It is really funny and scary. Like why would someone print a phrase on their body parts? It does not matter if it is on private parts because the tattoo maker would know the phrase. They are not dumb. Anyone from the family at a funeral or your girlfriend or wife could see those words. As a matter of fact, sometimes funny incidents happen at pools or beaches, and a glance could make you a target if someone is around. Usually bad people also spend a lot of time in these places.

By the way, how did that person come up with this idea? I mean there must be a good explanation for it.

[snowpega]

...

One time I had to convince someone who legitimately thought getting a small tattoo of their private key on a...private...part of their body was a bad, bad, bad idea. I wish I was joking.

It is really funny and scary. Like why would someone print a phrase on their body parts? It does not matter if it is on private parts because the tattoo maker would know the phrase. They are not dumb. Anyone from the family at a funeral or your girlfriend or wife could see those words. As a matter of fact, sometimes funny incidents happen at pools or beaches, and a glance could make you a target if someone is around. Usually bad people also spend a lot of time in these places.

By the way, how did that person come up with this idea? I mean there must be a good explanation for it.

Haha, what a crazy idea it is. Well, for that act I think such kind of perosn should hire a private boday part bodyguard, haha? Kidding! But it is literally the cringiest and silliest thing I have ever read in crypto space. Well, let's just suppose the person who is printing the private key, I mean, the tattoo maker, is not familiar with the crypto space and has no idea what a seed phrase or private key is, then in such a case, that person is safe. But on the other hand, the people you love the most, and you share your every aspect of life with them, here I am targeting girlfriends who have easy access to your private part, haha, can see and know what you have printed on your private part.

And in such a case, you are fully exposed because if your affairs do not take that long and you break up with your partner, then she can steal all the money you have in crypto form to damage you with the help of the private keys she has been seeing all that time while having fun with you. So, very bad idea. What do you say, Zain?

[Miles2006]

Security practice is definitely a norm, either airgapped or not when a holder is not mindful enough they might fall into bitcoin scam. These scammers find every possible best to attack and the moment our private informations are sent out they have every chance to steal our funds. What we fail to understand is that whenever there’s a new invention they’re people who are always ready to research how to scam holders, this issue with scam practice has been a major problem so far viewing the number of victims keep increasing.

[Findingnemo]

Airgapped devices means no malicious file or any kind of online thing exploits the wallet file, which doesn't make it is safe from physically accessing the device and use some usb stick to read all the data. But accessing the device physically is a lot harder, and one must be dumb to keep the access for others as well.

Security assets comes with it;s challenges, so we have to find ways to avoid all of them if we want to keep them safe.

[noorman0]

-snip-
1) criminals don't know how to stop to get what they want, even if your device is offline they can still exploit sophisticated methods to breach airgapped device, it's called remote hacking attempts.

I need to once again confirmed my understanding of "airgap" is correct. So, is there a remote hacking method I'm not aware of other than through a local network or the internet?
Unless you're referring to users occasionally activating wireless network features that alter the intent of the devices they're using.

[Faisal2202]

Haha, what a crazy idea it is. Well, for that act I think such kind of perosn should hire a private boday part bodyguard, haha? Kidding! But it is literally the cringiest and silliest thing I have ever read in crypto space. Well, let's just suppose the person who is printing the private key, I mean, the tattoo maker, is not familiar with the crypto space and has no idea what a seed phrase or private key is, then in such a case, that person is safe. But on the other hand, the people you love the most, and you share your every aspect of life with them, here I am targeting girlfriends who have easy access to your private part, haha, can see and know what you have printed on your private part.

And in such a case, you are fully exposed because if your affairs do not take that long and you break up with your partner, then she can steal all the money you have in crypto form to damage you with the help of the private keys she has been seeing all that time while having fun with you. So, very bad idea. What do you say, Zain?

I think it would be safe to say that most service providers and vendors already know about Bitcoin. They might not fully understand what a seed phrase is or how important it can be, but it is still not advised to engrave or tattoo it on your body. Even if you try to encrypt the seed phrase and make it long, which would already be painful enough, it is still a bad idea because anyone could eventually try to decrypt it if it is visible to others, especially if it is not on a private part haha.

Haha, I laughed when you cared more about the damage to the body part. You could be right though, because I do not know much about the side effects except what I have heard in some videos. But overall, we should simply avoid doing it, and yes, it is definitely a bad idea. You do not need confirmation from zainmalik75 haha.

[PrivacyG]

No method is perfect nor is maximum security perfectly impenetrable level of safe.  In fact high levels of security often becomes such an over load due to complexity that the fear of an external factor attacking you ends up evolving as the main inside problem where you do not even know how to unlock and access things any more.

Remotely hacking a Trezor or particularly an Airgapped Computer, I do not know how that would work.  I get why they would try to breach an offline Trezor but a computer?  Very unlikely unless you are being tracked by three letter agencies.

On the other hand.  An insider threat can be very real.  But it resorts to two solutions.  You either do not tell a single word and resort to not trusting the person at all with your Cryptocurrencies or you tell them about it and accept the risk of this possibly being your fall.  I imagine most people who told their partners about their Cryptocurrencies did not expect that they were actually evil and would plan a theft or a sabotage.  But again.  Choosing to tell means implicitly accepting the risk.

Hell.  Your child grows up to the age you are finally ready to tell them about Bitcoin.  Just in case you die all of a sudden so they can know how to recover and use them.  Would you expect getting stabbed and killed by your own child because they would actually sacrifice even their own parent for enough money?  I guess you would not.  But unfortunately.  It happens.

[Stalker22]

The biggest misconceptions come from a fundamental misunderstanding.  Air-gapped devices do not mitigate all threats; there is still the chance that one might fall victim to a phishing attack, blindly sign a malicious smart contract, or even have a gun pointed at them.  However, they do mitigate remote network attacks entirely.  How can someone hack into a device they have no access to?

[PrivacyG]

The biggest misconceptions come from a fundamental misunderstanding.  Air-gapped devices do not mitigate all threats; there is still the chance that one might fall victim to a phishing attack, blindly sign a malicious smart contract, or even have a gun pointed at them.

All these scenarios and then there is the most common attack, the person has the most secure Hardware Wallet in the World and ends up writing down their Seed on a website promising to give their Hardware Wallet an Anti Quantum Attack super power update.

However, they do mitigate remote network attacks entirely.  How can someone hack into a device they have no access to?

I am assuming there ARE some vulnerabilities in Hardware Wallets that have wireless capabilities such as Bluetooth or even Wi-Fi.  But most Hardware Wallets are always disconnected AND shut down so I do not know how that could even happen, particularly considering the Bluetooth vulnerabilities I know of required pretty close proximity to the device.  A hacker writing green text in a Linux Terminal from 1000 miles away and successfully attacking a Trezor that is offline and shut down, that can only happen in movies I suppose.