News & Events
WHAT IS A COLD WALLET
- August 16, 2022
- Posted by: Jacob Emmanuel
- Category: blog post
WHAT ARE COLD WALLETS AND DOES IT OPERATE?
The world of cryptocurrencies has become popular since the birth of Bitcoin in 2009, especially in recent years.
Along with a surge in tokens and investors, there is an increase in the use and acceptability of virtual currencies.
With the rise in popularity has come an increase in theft, and fraud. Virtual currency owners who fall victim to fraud have little redress.
What Exactly are cold wallets?
A cold wallet is an offline wallet that stores bitcoins and other Cryptocurrencies. The digital wallet is kept on a system that is not linked to the internet.
This shields it from illegal access, cyberattacks, and other vulnerabilities that a system connected to the internet is prone to.
Unlike keeping money in the bank where the bank bears the risk of securing users’ funds, it’s up to the investor to keep their cryptocurrency secure.
A bitcoin owner’s public and private keys are linked to their bitcoin wallet. A private key is a special string of alphanumeric letters needed to access a user’s bitcoin assets for spending.
The public key functions as a destination for coins that are transmitted to the wallet and is comparable to an account name or email address.
To execute a transaction between two individuals using a cryptocurrency like bitcoin, one of who is a seller and the other a buyer, they will need to exchange public keys.
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HOW DOES A COLD WALLET WORK?
When you are accessing your keys, a cold storage technique shouldn’t be able to communicate with any other electrical device unless it is plugged into that device.
Any online transaction is first temporarily transferred to an offline wallet stored on a USB drive, CD, hard drive, piece of paper, or offline computer.
There, the transaction is digitally signed before being sent back to the online network. Even if an online hacker came across the transaction, they would not be able to access the private key used for it.
The private key does not come into contact with a server connected online during the sending process.
The method of transferring to and from a cold storage device is slightly more difficult than the process for a hot wallet in exchange for this increased security.
COLD STORAGE VS HOT STORAGE
The conventional means of storing Cryptocurrencies are called a hot wallet. However, they each have unique features:
SECURITY: Cold wallets are more secure than hot wallets. Since hot wallets are online, they are prone to attacks.
CONVENIENCE: Hot wallets are more convenient for transactions you can easily send and receive Crypto by scanning a QR code with your mobile device.
COST; Most hardware wallets are created for free whereas the most common form of cold wallets range from $50-$150 depending on the brand
Those that believe investing in cryptocurrency is a good idea frequently employ a combination of hot and cold storage to obtain the best of both worlds.
Their daily trading and lesser quantities of cryptocurrency are kept in a hot wallet, but they store most of their cryptocurrency in cold storage.
Cold storage is a sensible choice given how crucial it is to keep your cryptocurrency secure.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CRYPTOCURRENCIES
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