Basic Crypto with the Beasts: Staying safe and secure

In light of recent events, we thought it would be great to share basic crypto security tips with the community. No tricks, no nonsense, just helpful advice that can keep you and your assets safe. We don’t want to see those amazing Hype Beasts fall into the wrong hands.

To kickstart the series, we’ll start with some general tips. You may know a lot of these, but that’s okay, a refresh is always a great idea.

Basic crypto security tips to keep your web3 assets safe and secure

Basic security tips

Use Strong Passwords: Always use a new password for each account and include a minimum of 15 characters, across upper and lower case letters, numbers, and symbols.

Use a Password Manager: If you have trouble remembering all of your unique passwords, then use a password manager like Bitwarden or Enpass.

Enable 2FA Authentication: Where possible, always enable two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication to protect your accounts. App-based two-factor tools are better than email or phone number. Phone numbers can always be spoofed through SIM exploits.

Don’t Leave Your Phone Unattended: Your phone is often the gateway into all of your accounts, crypto, fiat, and non-financial related. Never leave it unattended, and never trust anyone with it alone — even family and friends. 

Always Double-Check URLs: Never follow links blindly without first double-checking the actual URL. Look for strange names, errors, grammatical issues, and unofficial context. In other words, it’s best to navigate directly to an official site yourself instead of following a link someone shared or a link visible in a search result.

Wallet security tips

NEVER EVER Share Your Seed Phrase: Do not, under any circumstances, share your seed or recovery phrase for your crypto wallets with anyone.

Never Store Your Seed Phrase Digitally: Avoid storing your seed phrase in a document online, on your computer, or in any digital format. Don’t even use password managers to store this information — they have been compromised before.

Split Up Your Seed Phrase: A seed phrase consists of twelve random words and you can’t access the wallet, or recover it, without the entire phrase. That’s why it’s a good idea to store that phrase separately across locations, like in several hideaways, safes, or otherwise. Storing them all in one location or on a single sheet of paper is risky.

Use Cold Storage: Wallets come in a variety of types, including hot and cold wallets. A “hot” wallet is one always connected to the internet, which is considered fully exploitable. A “cold” wallet or cold storage is an offline wallet meant for storing cryptocurrencies and coins over the long term. 

Web3 security tips

Use the Revoke Tool: After interacting with web3 apps and contracts, use the revoke tool. It ensures apps cannot access your wallet or anything stored in it. It can be annoying having to reauthorize an app you trust after each use, yes, but better safe than sorry.

Not Your Keys, Not Your Coins: This popular saying means that if you don’t have access to the seed phrase and recovery key, you’re not really in control of your wallet. It primarily applies to wallets available on an exchange. As a general rule, do not store large amounts of crypto on an exchange.

Use Multiple Wallets: Don’t store all your eggs in one basket. Split your crypto up between wallets, especially if you have large quantities. Follow the same strategy with NFTs.

Don’t Trust Search Engines: Believe it or not, scammers and phishing experts have hijacked search results before with their compromised portals showing up at the top of search results. When you search for that particular app, brand, or even wallet provider, the compromised hyperlinks show instead. Phishing scams have also shown up in places you’d least expect. Some examples are mobile stores like the App Store and Google Play, or official websites, and community channels — like Discord.

We hope this helps beasts!

Stay vigilant and stay safe out there.