A book I read a few months ago on cryptocurrency, half pages of it talked about securing our keys. I kept hissing each moment I flipped a page and realized it was about security. I hate long talk, I felt a page should be enough to discuss the subject. I never understood why the author kept pounding on the matter of security. How would I?When at that time my entire account was worth just $2, losing the account wasn't a big deal, until my account started growing and I heard stories of people whose entire savings were wiped off by cyber hackers. I didn't have much then but my subconscious and conscious mind flashed the catastrophe of losing my savings, probably money I have been saving to start up a business, or make mama proud to someone who has not worked for it.
I started to become conscious of the sites I visit, the wifi I connect to, the folder I save my passwords, and the format to which they are saved. With recent development in technology, hackers have had diverse ways in which they access people's private information, but most often they use viruses, certain applications which seek permission to our files, public wifi, and other forms of connection which could even be through a phone call. This is why I limit most applications from accessing my files except proven to be trustworthy.
There are a few measures I have put in place in securing sensitive information.
1.I don't save my passwords in my phone files. I know they're long and cannot be crammed, so I have agreed with myself to go through the stress of writing them down in a note which is safely stored in my locker. You can only access it manually if you have the key to my padlock. Though google has a copy of it, which most times is susceptible to hackers, I had tried to use a password I believe is strong enough not to be detected easily, maybe except if the hacker comes from my village and knows my grandmother's tribal name.
2.Two way authentication: I almost cried one particular time when I tried to breach my two way authentication after forgetting my password. I never did break it, I had no choice than to find another means to recover my account. Setting a two way authentication is one sure way to secure your account. A hacker may break the first firewall but mostly may not be able to penetrate through the two way authentication as it's different from the entire password that has been hacked.
3.I don't access public WiFi: I know how sweet free data could be, but thinking about losing my savings is enough to make me lose my appetite for free WiFi. Sometimes wifi connection could synchronize some of the information on our phone making it vulnerable to hackers.
4.Finally, I don't back up my Cryptocurrency password with my username attached, that's in case of hive and for others I don't include my email, I just write the password. Even if you come across the password, you don't know which username was used. I do this on Facebook. I have my passwords sent as messages on Facebook for backup purposes, but excluded my usernames to ensure no one knows what the password is for, or for which site to access them.
These methods look local, I know, you don't have to voice out. I don't really know if they have helped me unknowingly in the past. I just believe saving anything offline is more secure than online, people can break into our firewalls but saving our sensitive information with no names or sites they can access will help us. I noticed some applications are created just for the purpose of stealing private data, granting them access is the consent they always seek after.
