Possessing a cryptocurrency is no longer a wild west affair that many people termed it a few years ago. Today, most people have access to cryptocurrencies and investors are making significant amounts of money from the trade of cryptocurrencies. This growth of investment, even from people with little knowledge in the cryptocurrency technicalities, has opened up the market to scammers and hackers. Investors in cryptocurrency are exposed to high risk and instabilities. These risks are not just theoretical, as new scammers come up every day and new risks emerge, putting many investors at risk of losing their hard earned investments. These risks can be in the form of fake wallets set up to scam users, phishing attempts, or even the launching a fake cryptocurrency. Every day new tricks emerge and investors have to be extremely careful when transacting their businesses. Investors must, therefore, take several security measures to safeguard their cryptocurrency. Some of the methods cryptocurrency investors can use to safeguard their investments include:
Have a Secure Wallet
The most secure way of safeguarding your cryptocurrency is to store it in a digital wallet. A wallet ensures that only you have full access and control to your coins. However, you also need to ensure that your wallet is safe by choosing a secure hardware wallet. Having a cold wallet, such as a USB drive, is usually a more secure way as its impossible for hackers to access via online techniques. You should also consider using multiple wallets for storing your data if you have huge investments. Storing your cryptocurrencies in multiple wallets will minimize the possible losses and safeguard most of your coins.
Additionally, make sure you keep your private keys in a secure place. A private key is a secret number that allows bitcoins to be spent. Every Bitcoin wallet contains one or more private keys, which are saved in the wallet file. Because the private key is the “ticket” that allows someone to spend bitcoins, it is important that these are kept secure. You can store this on a device or even on a piece of paper, but it is important not to store it on the same device that holds your wallet because if anything were to happen to that device, your private key would be gone resulting in your wallet access being denied.
Create Strong Passwords When Setting Up Your Accounts
Setting up your cryptocurrency accounts may be the most basic part, but it is crucial in safeguarding your coins. When setting up your account ensure you use strong and long passwords that are hard to hack for both your cryptocurrency and email accounts. It is always recommended to use both uppercase and lowercase letters, along with special characters. You should also opt-in using a new email account for each exchange account and enable two-factor authentication for all of your exchange accounts. Gmail allows you to set up as many email accounts as you need for free. Make sure that you secure all your passwords and encrypt your backup files.
Be Vigilant When Making Cryptocurrency Transactions
Scammers are always developing new techniques to con investors. When carrying out your transactions, you should double check the wallet address to make sure you have entered the correct address. Cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible, so it is not possible to recover coins sent to the wrong address. You should also research and understand how the coins work before investing in them. Ensure you pay close attention to the exchange accounts you use for transactions to ensure they are of good reputation.
Other safety measures that you should consider while transacting in cryptocurrencies include; Keep an eye out and refrain from opening fake websites and Emails sent to your accounts, as they are phishing attempts. More so, do not post details about your cryptocurrency investments to social media as that can make you a prime target for hackers and scammers.
With these basic measures, you will make sure that your cryptocurrency investment is secure and reduce the risk of losses. After protecting your accounts, share your knowledge. Inform other investors close to you in efforts to make the whole cryptocurrency field secure.