Hello everybody! Today we will talk about purses for storing crypto currency.
Before anyone who buys or extracts crypto-currencies, the question arises: where to store the coins securely? The correct choice of a hot and cold wallet is an important and responsible step, because the security of crypto-currency assets depends on it.
There are three ways to store crypto currency: hot, local and cold. In addition, wallets are divided into ordinary and multicurrency. The latter allow you to store several different crypto currency in one place.
- Hot is called so because of the fact that the coins in it are always available online, and you can spend them at any time. Such wallets require access to the Internet, as they support an active connection with the block, and the funds themselves are often stored on the company's servers. In most cases, these wallets have direct access to your private keys, which reduces the level of security, but at the same time increases the usability: you can access the wallet at any time, sometimes knowing only your login and password. Using such methods, it is recommended to connect additional security measures provided by the service, for example, two-stage authentication (confirmation of entries and operations via SMS or code in a special application).*
Blockchain.info
The market leader. Is the most famous online service. Time-tested, easy to use. Work with money is protected by two-factor authentication and a secret phrase for restoring access (if you forgot the password, but did not receive a secret phrase, you will not be able to restore access to the wallet). The private key is encrypted and stored by the company, but it can be exported.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash.
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android.
BTC.com
The purse belongs to one of the leaders among manufacturers of equipment for mining - the company Bitmain. Its main feature is that unlike other online purses, BTC.com does not have access to the user's private keys - they are stored only on its device. The slogan of the purse: "Your bitcoin. Under your control. " Provides the opportunity to purchase crypto currency directly through the wallet. It has open source code, so that anyone who wants (having the necessary background in programming) can evaluate the application from the security point of view.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash.
Platforms: Web, iOS, Android.
Monee
Convenient purse for storing the air and participating in the ICO. A private key is stored on the telegram servers for greater convenience. The wallet itself is also located on the server, so at any time and from any device to it you can access through the Telegram interface.
Crypto currency: Ethereum.
Platforms: Web, Telegram
Local wallets store private keys not on company servers, but on your device. At the same time they also have an Internet connection, because they can not be called completely safe.
Bread
The wallet is downloaded to your mobile device. "No accounts, no logins": instead of them a 12-word paper key is used. The wallet is completely decentralized and is connected directly to the block with this key, which increases its protection. When creating a new wallet, the application will show 12 different words: one word per page. They need to be written down and stored in a safe place. Provides the ability to purchase bitcoin directly through the purse, and also exchange it for bitcoin cache, ether, digital Japanese yen (XJP) and tokens of the ERC20 standard.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash.
Platforms: iOS, Android.
Copay
A purse that can be shared: a separate Copay wallet may have several owners, and when performing transactions, each member of the group must confirm the transaction. Copay offers to share a wallet with friends or colleagues or introduce their children to bitcoin. To ensure reliable transactions, Copay supports the full bitcoin payment protocol (BIP70), which improves the security of interaction between the seller and the buyer, avoids mistakes in making payments, and provides additional protection against the "man in the middle" attack. Both the server and the mobile application have open source code, which increases the transparency of the wallet. Has a test network for iOS and Windows Phone, which is an advantage for developers.
Crypto currency: Bitcoin.
Platforms: iOS, Android, Mac OS X, Windows, Linux.
BitPay
One of the products of the project is Copay. At the same time Copay is responsible for the direction of development and "remains true to its open nature", while the BitPay application is more focused on the practical use of bitcoin. The main difference between Copay and BitPay is that BitPay Card is integrated into the latter - a prepaid Visa debit card, and this facilitates operations with bitcoin. Like Copay, BitPay supports the BIP70 payment protocol and guarantees all the benefits associated with it.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash.
Platforms: iOS, Android, Linux, Windows, macOS Sierra.
Exodus
Easy to use and convenient multicurrency wallet with a nice interface. One of the best options for those who prefer to store crypto-currencies on a personal computer. Exodus does not provide an option to purchase crypto currency, however, integration with the ShapeShift service makes it convenient to exchange crypto-currencies right in the application.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Dash, Golem, Augur, Decred, EOS, Aragon, Gnosis, OmiseGo, Civic, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic.
Platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux.
Jaxx
A popular multi-currency and multi-platform wallet: it has a mobile, browser and desktop versions, and the desktop version is portable: it can be stored and launched from a USB flash drive. To keep current information about the state of the purse displayed on all used devices, you need to synchronize them using a secret phrase of 12 words (also this phrase allows you to backup). Like Exodus, Jaxx is integrated with ShapeShift, allowing you to exchange crypto-currencies inside your wallet.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum (and Ethereum Testnet), Ethereum Classic, Bitcoin Cash, Zcash, Dogecoin, Golem, Augur, REP, Gnosis, Rootstock (and RSK Testnet), Iconomi, DigixDAO, Zap, Worldcore, Wings, Wax, Viberate, Unicorn Gold, UCash, TokenCard, Swarm, Stox, Storm, Status, Sense, SONM, Salt, ShipChain, Rootstock, Santiment, iExec, Ripio Credit, Quantum, Presearch, Poet, Paypie, Polymath, TenX, Melon, Monaco, Musiconomi, Winding Tree, Matchpool, Fuel, Dawn, Enjin, Edgeless, DomRaider, DAPowerPlay, DigixDAO, Dentacoin, Civic, Creditbit, Cofoindit, Bitclave, Bancor, Blockmason, BlockchainCapital, Brickblock, Basic Attention Token, Maecenas, Aion, Aragon, FirstBlood .
Platforms: iOS, Android, Mac OS X, Windows, Linux and an extension for the Chrome browser.
Electrum
One of the oldest wallets, appeared in 2011. Issued under license from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), it has an open source code, decentralized: "No enterprise controls the network," the website says. Protects transactions by two-factor authentication using the TrustedCoin server and binding the purse to the phone number. In this case, additional code is required to send bitcoins, which comes to the smartphone. Electrum has an even more secure portable hardware version: the purse is downloaded to a USB flash drive, which can be connected to a computer for transferring funds. This transaction will be signed offline.
Crypto currency: Bitcoin.
Platforms: Linux, Windows, Mac OS X, Android.
Coinomi
Supports a large number of crypto-currencies. Has a secret phrase of 18 words for backup and restore of the wallet. The company does not maintain user activity on the servers and guarantees a high level of privacy: Coinomi does not support the KYC identity policy, does not track the transaction history and anonymizes requests, hiding the user's IP addresses from prying eyes. You can not buy crypto currency inside the service, however, you can use the internal exchange of crypto currency with the help of Changelly and ShapeShift exchangers.
Crypto-currencies: 154 crypto-currencies, including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, Bitcoin Atom, Bitcoin Private, Litecoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Dash, Zcash, ZClassic, Callisto, Vertcoin, Viacoin, DigiByte, Dogecoin, Verge, Vice Industry Token.
Platforms: iOS, Android
Cold wallets are designed for offline storage of crypto currency on your personal device - without connecting to the network. To do this, you can use a personal computer, phone, flash drive or even a regular piece of paper. Cold storage is considered to be the most secure, since private purse keys are also stored on your personal device and are not accessible from the outside. To purses with a cold method of storage it is possible to carry hardware and paper purses.
Hardware wallets are a special device for storing crypto currency. This type of purse has a USB-input for connection to a computer, and outwardly it resembles a flash drive of different forms. Often hardware wallets are protected from viruses, hacking and external influences. The analogue of such a purse is a simple USB-purse, the method of creating which is described in the blog Quora, but its degree of protection is much lower.
Trezor
It is the first hardware purse, it was released in 2013. It looks like a wide USB-flash drive with built-in screen and control panel. It is protected by a pin code. Each transaction requires physical confirmation - that is, you must press the appropriate key on the device. Has a convenient interface and its own software for computers, compatible with most popular operating systems. Using OTG-cable and the corresponding API, you can work in the Android-application. Compatible with the wallets Electrum, MyEtherWallet, Electrum-LTC, Electrum-DASH, Mycelium, Sentinel, Etherwall, ArcBit, Blockonomics and NEM Nano Wallet. Data protection is carried out using two-factor authentication of the FIDO / U2F standard. The secret phrase for restoring access to the wallet consists of 12 or 24 words - the user's choice.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dash, Zcash, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, Ethereum (and all ERC-20 tokens), Ethereum Classic, Expanse, UBIQ, NEM, Namecoin, Dogecoin, Bitcoin Testnet (tokens of no value and used developers when testing new solutions in the corresponding test network).
Price: from € 89 (without VAT).
KeepKey
It does not have an operating system: the program is run directly on the equipment, operating on the principle of the so-called "bare metal" (bare-metal). It is protected by a pin code. Compatible with Electrum and Mycelium wallets. Managing the purse and sending crypto currency is through the application for Google Chrome. Has a secret phrase to restore access. As in Trezor, you need a physical confirmation for the transaction: you need to enter a PIN code, confirm the recipient's address and the transfer amount. All this happens on the screen of the wallet itself.
Crypto currency: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Dash, Namecoin, Bitcoin Testnet, Ethereum, Dash.
The price is $ 129.
Ledger Nano S
It was created in 2015. Compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome OS. Also can connect to the device on Android using an OTG cable. It is protected by a pin-code and has a secret phrase to restore access. Has a high level of confidentiality, because users do not have to provide personal data. It is protected by two-factor authentication of the FIDO / U2F standard. Compatible with wallets Electrum, BitGo, MyEtherWallet.
Crypto-currencies: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash, Zcash, Dogecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, Ethereum Classic, Ripple, Stratis, Komodo, Ark, Expanse, Ubiq, Vertcoin, Viacoin, Neo, Stealthcoin, Stellar, Hcash, Digibyte, Qtum , PivX, PosW.
Price: from € 79.
Paper wallets can be considered the most reliable, since such a "wallet" can not be hacked: it does not have a network connection and is a pair of public key (or addresses for obtaining a crypto currency) printed on paper and a private key (for sending a crypto currency). Then everything depends on the user: you need to remember where the information sheets are stored and keep them in a safe place in complete secrecy.
Risks related to paper storage are obvious and are purely physical: the fragility of paper carriers (water, dirt, fire) - this will save the creation of several copies, and even a physical attack: in addition to hacker attacks, bitcoin traders have repeatedly become victims of ordinary criminals, who can break into the house or wait in the street.
To create a paper key, you need a special generator program that randomly creates unique keys. At the same time, there are programs for online and offline generation, and it's more reliable to choose the first option: so your wallet will not exactly fall into the network. Also, to avoid stealing a private key, it is recommended to disable Internet access beforehand. Popular services for creating paper keys are WalletGenerator - for bitcoin, bitcoin cache, lightcoin, Dash, Dogecoin and a number of other coins, MyEtherWallet for ether, and generators for IOTA, monero and ripple.
The keys are generated as QR codes, which can then be scanned and imported into the online wallet for transactions. This method of storage is most convenient for large amounts, which are not constantly involved in trading.