How to choose your first cryptocurrency wallet

How to choose your first cryptocurrency wallet. A short guide to keep on hand.

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If you have recently landed in the world of cryptocurrency, it is possible that one of the most common questions is ... where I can store Bitcoin & co securely?

In reality, at least from a technical point of view, one's own is not stored criptovaluta, but rather the private key that will allow you to access, send and spend your cryptocurrency. Without this private key, you cannot access your coins.

Now, there are three main ways to preserve yours criptovaluta / private key: nei wallet of custody, in the software wallet And in the hardware wallet. In turn, currency conservation can be "hot" or "cold". Hot storage takes place when the coins are stored online, and - on the other hand - cold storage takes place when the coins are kept offline.

Coinbase wallet

This wallet may seem to be the most complicated, but it is probably one of the first cryptocurrency wallets that most people use. If you buy your cryptocurrency through exchange like Coinbase, the currency will be stored in its own account Coinbase, which offers - precisely - wallet guarded. In more practical terms, your private keys will be kept and stored for you by a third-party custodian, such as the Exchange, in basically hot wallets.

Well, in some cases the above is not a bad thing: all you need to remember is your access data to the platform, and the rest will be up to the "custodian", who diligently should take care of the security of your money. However ... if a custodian controls a large number of portfolios on behalf of his clients, it can also become (as unfortunately happened) a great target for hackers.

In short, the wallet of custody could be a simple and quick way to preserve cryptocurrencies, but it may not be the safest.

Software Wallet (the most used classics)

I software wallet they are one of the most accessible forms of wallet for cryptocurrency. As the name suggests, it is simply software that runs on hardware that you already own, such as your laptop or smartphone, and that will protect your private keys. Like the above wallets, software wallets are also usually hot.

Software wallets have few barriers to entry as they cost nothing, and all you have to do is configure them, generate an address and start sending or receiving encrypted currency in them.

However, i software wallet, and in particular those of smartphones, are not always safe. The security level of a smartphone-based software portfolio varies depending on how the app uses the phone's hardware to protect the coins.

Furthermore, because smartphones are usually always online, they are vulnerable to many more attack vectors, such as phishing, than hardware-based offline storage.

Ledger hardware wallet

I hardware wallet  portable they are surely one of the safest ways to store your cryptocurrency right now, as they store your encrypted currency offline. A hardware wallet is a real physical device responsible for protecting the encrypted currency and the private key: most of them have the appearance of a USB key, usually with a small screen, and some buttons.

All you have to do is simply connect a hardware wallet to the Internet when you need to make a transaction. A nice security which, however, is offset by the fact that keeping them offline makes them a little more uncomfortable than online ones.

Furthermore, although hardware wallets are "cold", and are safe from hackers, they are not actually 100% immune, as they can be infected with malware & co.

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