Cryptocurrencies are valuable assets, and value often awakens a sense of greed in people. It’s a fact: From whales to scammers, everyone is trying to think of new twisted ways to make you let go of your crypto. That is why you should be extra careful when it comes to security and personal information. With these tips, we hope to make it easier for you.
Common scams in the crypto space
It may be hard for newcomers to learn about cryptography, mnemonic phrases, blockchain, and every other aspect of crypto security. But, unfortunately, most basic scams and frauds target beginners who aren’t yet familiar with these malicious practices.
From fake tweets from popular influencers to private messages from Telegram group “moderators” or customer service teams asking for your recovery seed for troubleshooting, every crypto user should learn and assimilate automatic responses to these situations. You don’t have to be a genius to identify these, but you also can easily fall for them if you’re a bit distracted.
Keep your information to yourself
The easiest way to take your crypto from you is to give people your keys. If you gave someone your password or your recovery seed and get your funds stolen, you shouldn’t be surprised. That would compare to telling a stranger your credit card information expecting that nothing would happen. It will.
That said, you can solve precisely zero problems by sending your recovery phrase to a customer support team, so don’t do it. It’s scammers 100% of the time. If you’re having trouble, the best thing you can do is log in to the platform you need help with and contact customer service directly through live chat or opening a support ticket.
On the other hand, some Twitter influencers may conduct the occasional giveaway. Then again, those don’t require you to send any passwords or private keys. You should only need your wallet address, so never send anything beyond that.
Always enable 2FA
Even if you’re careful, some hacker could extract your password from vulnerable sites, or someone may steal your computer with your accounts logged in. If that happens to you (we hope it doesn’t), enabling 2FA protects you against it.
2FA through an authenticator app or SMS/email verification adds an extra layer of security and provides you with unique, one-time passwords needed to log in or move funds around. Only the owner of the linked device can access these passwords. Even if someone has access to your account, they would still need your device to steal your money.
Some people even use old phones or tablets exclusively as a 2FA device. That way, all their keys are protected in a device that doesn’t ever leave their house. Be careful, though, as you will lose access to all your accounts if you lose your authenticator device. So be sure to make backups and write down the recovery codes.
Use multiple wallets
Ever heard of “don’t keep all your eggs in the same basket”? It applies to crypto too. Not only you should have different wallets. It would be best if you also had them serve other purposes.
The best you can do is divide your portfolio according to your investment strategy and use different wallets to store each part. For example, if you plan to invest 40% of your crypto in DeFi and yield faring, you could:
- Store the remaining 60% of your portfolio in a hardware wallet.
- Keep 10% on stablecoins on a hot wallet to add on dips.
- Hold your LP or stake them on farms using a Metamask account.
That way, you can mitigate the risks linked to storage and ensure that only what you’re willing to lose is in a vulnerable wallet.
Use a password manager
If you’re into crypto, you should know the one about not using the same password for every account by now. Of course, you should use a unique password for every account, and a complex one, at that.
That said, it can be messy to remember each one of them. Luckily for everyone, that’s what password managers are for. You can safely store your passwords, recovery phrases, TOTP codes, and all sorts of information. They also encrypt all data they store, only decrypted with your master password. As a free alternative, we recommend Bitwarden.
Don’t take security lightly
If two or more of your accounts share a password, you don’t have 2FA enabled, or you store all your funds in the same hot wallet, then your funds may be at risk. We know. Everybody thinks they’re safe. Until they’re not.
You’re never too safe when it comes to crypto. So if you haven’t done any of the tips listed in this article, please do so. You’ll thank us later.