↔️Sharing Information
Public Wallet Addresses
Most wallets have public addresses, these are okay to share with people as the information they provide is publicly accessible to everyone on the blockchain already.
These are frequently used by people to help troubleshoot issues. It is still a good idea to ONLY share these addresses with people you must transact with or who are admins in a TRUSTED group or server.
Note: When requesting for help/assistance with an issue you are having, be sure to TRIPLE CHECK you are in the right domain, asking the right people for help. An easy way to get scammed is by dropping into a public forum and asking for help.
Seed Phrases
What is a Seed Phrase?
A recovery phrase (sometimes known as a seed phrase) is a series of words generated by your cryptocurrency wallet that gives a user access to the crypto associated with that wallet. Think of a wallet as being similar to a password manager for crypto, and the recovery phrase as being like the master password. As long as you have your recovery phrase, you’ll have access to all of the crypto associated with the wallet that generated the phrase — even if you delete or lose the wallet.
One of the basic principles of cryptocurrency is the idea of “self-sovereignty”: you should be able to access your crypto without having to prove your identity, and you shouldn't have to rely on a bank or other institution to store it safely.
Private Keys
What is a Private Key?
A private key is an encrypted alphanumeric code that permits access to your bitcoin or cryptocurrency holdings. A private key's only purpose is to prove that you are the holder of a particular cryptocurrency address. When you have control of a private key you possess the power to make a transaction and spend the holdings attached to that address.
NOTE: A private key is something that you should never share with another person or entity; it is called a private key for a reason. If you do not OWN the private key of the address where your crypto is being stored, you technically do not own the assets. This is why it is SUPER IMPORTANT to know, own, & protect your private keys.
Storing Seed Phrases & Private Keys
Your private address/keys and seed phrases allow access to your wallets. They can be used to import wallets into new accounts or to recover access to an account if a device it was saved on is lost or destroyed. If you ever lose these AND lose access to your wallets you will have no way of recovering the crypto assets stored there.
This is also one way malicious attackers can steal your money, so precautions taken with storing this information is CRITICAL TO PROTECTING AND SECURING YOUR FUNDS.
Write down the seed phrase for each wallet you own in a clear & readable manner. Write each seed phrase on 3 separate pieces of paper and store in different secure locations.
Write down the private key for each account/wallet you own in a clear & readable manner. Write each private key on 3 separate pieces of paper and store in different secure locations.
Triple check the accuracy of the alphanumeric codes for each seed phrase/private key.
Protecting Your Information:
Best practice is to store this information, in physical form, in several different secure locations. This way if one is lost or destroyed, you are still able to access the information & your crypto assets.
The tried and true method of pen & paper never fails. There are other alternative options for storing this critical information. Here are some metal storage options from Trezor you could explore:
NOTE: Good Practices To Protect Yourself
NEVER send this information to any person/entity for any reason.
NEVER send this information electronically via unencrypted text messages/email
If you MUST send electronically, use an encrypted app such as Signal Messenger
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