If you are a crypto holder or just thinking of getting into the game, you need to know that your digital assets are at risk. There is always someone out there trying to steal your money. The only way to protect yourself from these threats is by knowing how they work and what you can do about them.
You should be aware that hackers are always coming up with new ways to steal your money, but there are ways to protect it from being stolen.
There are many ways hackers can get into a crypto wallet – from phishing scams to physical hardware attacks. This article discusses how to prevent hackers from intruding on your crypto wallet
Are crypto wallets necessary?
The answer to this question is a resounding “yes.” Crypto wallets are necessary for a variety of reasons. They help keep your cryptocurrency safe from hackers.
According to security.org, only one in five Americans uses a password manager. This translates to just 45 million people, with almost one-third of Americans having their identities stolen in 2020.
This is not good news for anyone who invests in crypto because it means that most people are leaving themselves open to having their accounts hacked or their passwords stolen by malicious actors.
How often do crypto wallets get hacked?
Crypto-wallets are popular targets for cybercriminals because they contain valuable digital assets that can be sold for cash. However, unlike bank accounts or credit cards, there’s no central authority that can help victims recover funds lost through theft or fraud.
According to a report by CipherTrace , the amount of cryptocurrency lost to hacking was valued at $ 4.5 billion and $ 1.9 billion for Defi hacks in 2019. The report also found that 35 percent of all thefts happened due to weak or stolen passwords.
Some common methods hackers use to intrude on your crypto wallet
- Phishing – Phishing is when hackers send emails with links that look like they belong to reputable companies or organizations but actually lead to malicious websites where they can steal your passwords and other personal details.
- Keyloggers – Keyloggers are small pieces of software or hardware that can record every time you type something on your computer keyboard and send that information back to whoever installed it onto your computer without your knowledge. Keyloggers can be used for everything from stealing passwords and personal data to spying on someone else’s device too!
- Trojans – Trojans are another malware that looks like legitimate software or programs but has harmful and malicious intentions. These viruses often come in the form of fake antivirus software, which then downloads other viruses onto your computer. A Trojan can also be a piece of software that allows hackers to access your system and steal personal information, such as passwords and bank accounts.
- Malware – Malware is software that runs on your computer without your knowledge or consent. It allows a hacker to take control of your system and see what you’re doing online, even if you’re using private browsing modes.
- Social engineering – Social engineering involves tricking people into giving up sensitive information by posing as a trustworthy person. It could be pretending to be someone else on social media, sending out phishing emails, or even calling you on the phone pretending to be from an official company.
- DDoS attacks – A Distributed Denial of Service attack (DDoS) aims to make an online service unavailable by overwhelming its infrastructure with traffic from multiple sources. DDoS attacks usually employ tens of thousands of infected devices that have been taken over by botnets controlled by cybercriminals.
Types of crypto wallets
There are different types of crypto wallets available for different types of coins, but some of the most common ones include:
- Online Wallet – This type of wallet is stored online on a server and accessed via an Internet connection. It can be accessed from anywhere worldwide as long as you have an Internet connection, but it can also be hacked if your private keys are stored there.
- Desktop Wallet – This type of wallet requires you to download and install software on your computer or mobile device to store and access your funds. However, there is still a risk that hackers could gain access to your computer and steal your private keys if they are not properly secured by setting up a strong password for each wallet.
- Hardware Wallet – This crypto wallet stores all your private keys offline so no one can gain access to them unless they physically have access to them (or break into your house). Hardware wallets are generally considered the safest way to store digital assets because they are not connected to the internet and therefore cannot be hacked remotely by anyone who wants to steal your money.
How to prevent crypto wallet hack
Use the right crypto wallet
Using a secure hardware wallet is the best way to protect your crypto. These wallets can be plugged into your computer or phone, offering additional protection against hackers. They’re also physical devices that are not connected to the internet and don’t have access to your sensitive information, which helps prevent unauthorized access to your funds.
Choose your crypto exchange carefully
You should be able to read through the site’s privacy policy and find out what measures they have in place to protect their users. For example, some exchanges require two-factor authentication (2FA) or provide additional security features like dedicated private keys for every user or cold wallets. Others allow users to set up API keys or even allow them to control their own private keys. The more secure an exchange is, the better protected you will be against hackers.
Use 2FA (Two-Factor Authentication)
Make sure that your new account uses 2FA (two-factor authentication) so that nobody can access your account without having access to your phone or other secondary devices with a secret code and knowing your password. This means that even if someone were able to steal your password, they still wouldn’t be able to get into your account without having access to another device with 2FA enabled on it first!
Don’t use the same password everywhere
If a hacker gets their hands on your email or social media account, they might try to reset passwords on your other accounts using that information. That’s why it’s essential to have different passwords for each website or service you use, especially those related to banking or finances – including crypto wallets and exchanges. Use a password manager like LastPass or 1Password to keep track of all your usernames and passwords securely in one place, so you don’t have to remember them all yourself!
Avoid public Wi-Fi when accessing your crypto wallet
Don’t use public Wi-Fi networks for anything related to cryptocurrency. Public Wi-Fi is less secure than private networks, making it easier for hackers to access your information. If you must use a public network, use a VPN (virtual private network) service that encrypts all data before leaving the app on your phone or computer and ensures it can’t be read by anyone else while it travels across the internet.
Keep all software updated
Ensure all software installed on your device is up to date with the latest security patches and fixes. Hackers often exploit outdated software versions to gain access to computers and mobile devices to steal information stored on them or install malware onto them to gain remote access later on.
Be wary of crypto phishing scams
Phishing is a form of fraud in which you’re tricked into disclosing your personal or financial information by an email, text message, or phone call that appears to be from a legitimate organization you know. The goal of phishing is to steal your sensitive information and use it for identity theft purposes.
Phishing scams have been around since the early days of the internet, but they continue to be very effective ways for hackers to steal money from unsuspecting victims. In fact, according to a CNBC report, Americans lost about $ 29.8 billion to phone scams in 2020.
The best way to protect yourself from phishing scams is to educate yourself on how they work and how they can disguise themselves as legitimate emails from companies like PayPal, Apple, or eBay. You should also avoid clicking on links in any emails that request personal information from you; instead, type out each URL yourself so that you don’t accidentally visit sites that could infect your computer with viruses or malware.
Don’t store your crypto on an exchange
Exchanges act as intermediaries between buyers and sellers. They allow users to trade fiat currencies like the US dollar for digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum. The problem with this is that exchanges hold your private keys – which means they control your funds – instead of you holding them yourself in your wallet.
If an exchange is hacked or otherwise compromised, it could lose all user funds stored on its platform, losing access to all of its coins.
This happened once before when Mt Gox was hacked in 2014, and 850,000 Bitcoins were stolen from its users – then valued at $ 450 million – making it one of the largest thefts in history. After being unable to repay users who lost money due to its hack, Mt Gox filed for bankruptcy protection in Japan and eventually closed down permanently in 2015 due to financial troubles related to the hack.
Don’t enable auto-login for websites, apps, or services.
This is especially important if you use Google Authenticator or Duo Security for two-factor authentication (2FA). Hackers can use phishing emails to trick you into entering your 2FA code into a fake website or app so that they can gain access to your account. They can also use keyloggers and other malware programs to steal your login information when you type it in manually.
To prevent this from happening, disable any automatic logins in your browser settings so that you have to manually enter your username and password each time before accessing an account. This will also help prevent keylogging malware from stealing your credentials.
Conclusion
Keeping your cryptocurrency safe from prying eyes is no easy task. Hackers use various sophisticated methods and tactics to try to force their way into an account – including brute force, social engineering, and even malware attacks. However, if you take some or all of the above precautions, you will successfully prevent hackers from intruding on your crypto wallets.