How to choose a wallet for storing cryptocurrency now

Passions about the security of storage on cold wallets do not weaken. Another reason for concern was the news about the possible interception of control over your funds by the authorities. It is reported that when you connect Ledger Recover, your SEED phrase is sent in encrypted form to three different organizations. The authorities can summon these organizations to court, find out the SEED phrase and seize crypto assets. This information was confirmed by the co-founder and former CEO of Ledger.

Initially, it seemed that everything was not so terrible. There was a feeling that by their decision to allow access to the wallet to be restored, the developers were trying to attract an audience that doubts their knowledge of the crypt and is accustomed to centralized services where you can always contact support services to restore access.

Initially, the developers claimed that the SEED phrase recovery function may not be used or be disabled. Ledger's technical director, Charles Guillemet, claimed that thanks to this feature, Ledger users will be able to allow the embedded software to send encrypted private keys from the device, which can then be put together to restore the SEED phrase. However, this feature can be disabled at the discretion of the user.

"The software running inside the protected element can be modified and has access to the secret," Guilleme said. This feature, according to Guilleme, was created mainly for those who want to increase the level of security on crypto exchanges, but do not have enough experience to use a cold wallet for which it is impossible to recover the password. "For beginners, independent management of crypto assets may seem difficult and frightening... especially if they are not aware of the technical features," explained CTO Ledger.

Simplification of the use of cryptocurrency tools is one of the conditions for mass adaptation of the general population. The possibility of voluntarily enabling the SEED phrase recovery function provided by Ledger is quite consistent with such trends in the industry.

No matter how sad it may be, we have to admit that it is more convenient for many users to store their crypto assets on centralized exchanges. This is due to the thoughtful usability, intuitive interface and the lack of need for self-management and, among other things, storage of private keys.

It would seem that Ledger's innovation can be considered a step forward towards improving the user experience. Especially considering the voluntary nature of this function. That is, each user decides for himself whether to activate it or not, which implies respect for the principle of independence and freedom of choice of the user.

For example, you can compare Ledger with hardware wallets from other manufacturers and determine their strengths and weaknesses.

Trezor

Trezor, for example, although it enjoys great popularity and trust, but its devices do not have hardware protection against physical attacks. This means that with physical access to the device, an attacker can try to extract the keys.

KeepKey

KeepKey, on the other hand, although it has a fairly user-friendly interface, but its functionality is much poorer compared to Ledger or Trezor.

Coldcard

Coldcard is characterized by transparency, as it uses open-source code. However, it can be a bit difficult for beginners due to the lack of a friendly user interface and the need for self-configuration.

BitBox02

BitBox02 from Shift Cryptosecurity. The BitBox02 interface is simple and intuitive, which makes it easier to work with the wallet. At the same time, BitBox02 provides a good level of security and transparency through the use of open-source code.

SafePal S1

SafePal S1, from a Binance-controlled company, attracts with its accessibility. However, SafePal S1 does not have the same level of transparency as other wallets because it does not use fully open-source code. In addition, unlike other devices, it runs on batteries, which can be both a plus and a minus, depending on the situation.

Ultimately, choosing a wallet is always a matter of preferences and priorities of a particular user. You can find news about almost any of the wallets that it has been hacked, always conduct your own research.

The controversy over the new Ledger feature is likely to continue, marking a conflict between convenience and security. This conflict will be the driving force pushing progress to bring these two concepts as close as possible in new devices.