What if your worst nightmare came true?! You unlock your phone to check on your crypto and you’re greeted by zeroes all around.
As the floor falls from under your feet, you turn on the PC to check your email and your worst fears are confirmed. There’s a polite but insincere email from your digital wallet provider informing you that a security breach has occurred.
The good news is that they’re taking immediate action to solve the problem. And the bad news?
Your account has been drained and you’ve lost everything.
The above scenario was a reality for thousands of Mt. Gox users who found themselves frozen out of their accounts back in 2014. Cyber criminals had hacked into the exchange and stole almost everything – leaving people angry and broke.
Fortunately, you can avoid all of this by taking a few simple steps to keep your crypto safe from hackers. Let’s take a look at how you can get started:
1. Invest in a cold wallet
Most amateur crypto enthusiasts start out with a hot wallet. Besides being free, hot wallets are extremely convenient as they allow you to access your cryptos from just about anywhere – from your smartphone to a desktop.
Due to this it’s easy to see why hot wallets are so popular. However, the reality is that hot wallets are not exactly the safest way to store your cryptocurrencies.
They store your crypto encryption keys on the site’s own servers. Because of this and the high-value of cryptocurrencies, hot wallet sites are often a favourite target of cyber criminals.
More often than not, the security measures in place can be easily defeated by a team of skilled hackers. And this is why it’s much more prudent to invest in a cold wallet.
Cold wallets do not have to be connected to the internet – thus making them impossible to hack into. They can also be physically secured in a safe location which provides users with an added layer of security.
If you regularly perform crypto transactions, you may want to store the bulk of your cryptos in a cold wallet and periodically transfer small quantities of crypto to your hot wallet.
This lets you send and receive cryptos while still keeping the bulk of your assets as safe as possible.
You can also find some very reliable crypto apps online fully encrypted. Check out the best crypto wallet apps by Tezro here.
- Have backups in place
If there’s one thing we’ve learnt over the years, it’s the importance of having backups for anything that you do.
Storing your cryptos across multiple hot wallets with multiple backup cold wallets makes it that much more difficult for a hacker to target you.
Also, having backups ensures that you’ll never have to worry about getting locked out of your holdings.
- Never perform transactions in public
As a rule of thumb avoid free Wi-Fi always. Whether you’re at a hotel, cafe, or airport, never make use of the free Wi-Fi.
Connecting to free Wi-Fi allows a hacker to intercept traffic that is being sent/received by your computer or smart device. From here, it becomes extremely easy to gain access to sensitive or private information.
So always remember to avoid accessing your crypto wallets when you’re connected to a non-secure network. Imagine the potential damage should a hacker be able to steal your bank/crypto wallet details.
- Regularly change your passwords
Changing your passwords regularly is another great habit to have. From emails to crypto wallets and maybe even work PCs, most of us are often guilty of using the same password for all of our accounts.
And this is why it’s important to regularly change your passwords. While you’re at it, be sure to use a strong password.
Avoid obvious details such as social security numbers, birth dates, and names of family members as these can be easily found out.
So there you have it, the 4 easiest but most effective methods of keeping your crypto safe from hackers. While it can be a hassle staying alert all the time, you’ll find that it’s well worth the effort.
@TechmashUK @Biz_Nooz #Biz_Nooz #TechmashUK