Hardware Wallets

Is having a Hardware Wallet enough? What more do you have to do to keep your coins safe?

1. Fire
2. Water
3. Nuclear Explosions
4. You

Random list? No, these are all potential risks that your 12-/24 Word Wallet Key phrase faces depending on which part of the world you are in. If you are situated in the United States nearly half of the states are likely to experience flooding in some calendar years. Australians and Californians may know a little bit about the opposite element, in terms of wildfires. Cape Townians should perhaps be weary about the Koeberg nuclear power plant about 30 Km from Cape Town. Although in some cases the risk is lower, spending a little bit of buck on a bit of extreme weather/conditions is a necessity to protect your coins. Your wallet key phrase is the single most important thing, if anything happens to your hardware wallet, your keys will come to your saviour, not the other way round. A hardware wallet is not the end of the line when it comes to security.

If anything was to happen to your key phrase, (more likely if just written on paper), there would be absolutely no way to recover your keys and your money.

If you do not already have a hardware wallet, get yourself one here. 

So what are the options?

The most secure way to store your key phrase is just as hardware as your hardware wallet. Engraved steel wallets are the current gold standard of key safety, as they can survive most extreme conditions.

1. Billfodl

Made from stainless steel at a grade of 316. This makes it very resilient to corrosion from water and fireproof.

Pros

• Compatible with crypto wallets like Ledger
• Affordable
• 125% lifetime money back guarantee 

Cons

• Production issues so sometimes out of stock

Purchase it here.

2. Cryptosteel

Can be purchased from the ledger site and is also reasonably priced but has a slightly lower grade than the above, with a grade of 304.

Pros

• Easy to use 
• Affordable
• Open Source Design

Cons

• Tiles are a bit harder to use 
• Easy to lose seed when recovering because of design

Purchase it here

Further security considerations

The steel wallet still does not protect from thieves. Make sure it is stored in a safe place and away from intruders, if someone finds it they can still access your crypto. Try not to store all of your backups in the same place, and definitely do not store your hardware wallet and your recovery phrase in the same place.

Summary

• Steel wallets protect your key phrases
• They help recover your coins if anything happens to your wallet
• Hardware wallets are not the complete solution just one part

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