Economy
How to Protect Your Crypto From Scams, Hacks
In 2023, it is estimated around $2 billion was lost by investors to scams, rug pulls and hacks. Although the technology is becoming more secure and stable and many users are more aware of the tricks used to steal assets, there are still ways for thieves to extract your crypto if you aren’t careful.
Experts at Smart Betting Guide have provided a guide on the best ways to keep your crypto safe in 2024.
1. Do not store your password and seed phrase on the Cloud
For many people, the best and most convenient way to access crypto is through an exchange or a crypto wallet. Cryptocurrency wallets store users’ public and private keys while providing an easy-to-use interface to manage crypto balances. These exchanges require you to create an account with a password, and wallets give you extra security through the use of a seed phrase. Seed phrases are a sequence of random words that store the data required to access or recover cryptocurrency on blockchains or crypto wallets. Hackers will often attempt to steal these in order to gain access to your crypto and steal it.
It is vital that these passwords and phrases are not stored in the cloud or on a device that could potentially be hacked. Instead, write these down, or get them engraved on a metal card (to protect against water damage or fire) and store them somewhere secure within your property.
Finally, no crypto protocols or their customer support staff will ever ask for this information from you, so if someone asks for it they are trying to steal your crypto.
2. Use a hardware wallet instead of an exchange
If you want to ensure your crypto is completely protected, a hard wallet is the best choice. This is a device such as a USB thumb drive that securely guards a crypto user’s private cryptographic keys in offline or “cold” storage, ready to be used online to complete a crypto transaction whenever you are ready. These are much safer than keeping crypto on an exchange; like with the FTX collapse, users lost billions of dollars of crypto stored in their wallets. Hardware wallets ensure that your crypto is safe from hackers and exchange collapses alike.
Pros: Cannot be accessed by anyone online and is completely secure from online attacks, also prevents loss of crypto from exchanges collapsing
Cons: Could be lost or damaged physically, rendering the crypto useless (although some come with backup features now)
3. DYOR – Do your own research
A rug pull is a scam where a cryptocurrency or NFT developer hypes a project to attract investor money, only to suddenly shut down or disappear, taking investor assets with them. These scams can often be well disguised, which makes them very difficult to spot. Many may be advertised across social media and entice investors through the promise of making lots of money. This is why it’s important to do your research before investing your money in any cryptocurrency or NFT.
Here are the things to look out for when thinking of investing in a new or unknown crypto:
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– Developers
Investors should consider how credible the team behind the project are. Are they known in the crypto community, and do they have a good or bad track record? Be sure to check the legitimacy of social media accounts. Have they just been created, or is there a clear history that the person is who they say they are? Anonymous developers are a red flag, and any projects are approached with caution. Anonymous developers are a red flag and any projects are approached with caution.
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– Whitepaper
It is important to check the quality of the white paper, this is a document that explains the purpose of a project and how it works. For a cryptocurrency, the whitepaper is a guide to its technology, features, and goals. If the whitepaper seems vague or doesn’t offer a valued use case or tokenomics then it could be a potentially risky investment.
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– No liquidity locked
One of the easiest ways to distinguish a scam coin from a legitimate cryptocurrency is to check if the currency is liquidity-locked. With no liquidity lock on the token supply in place, nothing stops the project creators from running off with the entirety of the liquidity.
Investors should also check the percentage of the liquidity pool that has been locked. A lock is only helpful in proportion to the amount of the liquidity pool it secures. Known as total value locked (TVL), this figure should be between 80% and 100%.
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– No external audit
It is now standard practice for new cryptocurrencies to undergo a formal code audit process conducted by a reputable third party. One notorious example is Tether, a centralised stablecoin whose team had failed to disclose that it held non-fiat-backed assets. An audit is especially applicable for decentralised currencies, where default auditing for DeFi projects is a must. However, potential investors shouldn’t simply take a development team’s word that an audit has taken place. The audit should be verifiable by a third party and show that nothing malicious was found in the code.
4. Verify fake apps and fake crypto exchanges
These are a very popular type of scam and target many investors, however, new investors are more likely to be impacted by these as they may be unsure of what to download. These fake apps can be used to steal money, cryptocurrencies or seed phrases and passwords. The best way to avoid these scams are:
- Never search for crypto apps directly from an app store. Always find the direct download link or redirect link to the app store from the company’s official website or whitepaper.
- Check for the number of app downloads and number of reviews – if these are low this is a red flag
- Check the developer of the app, this should be verifiable and come from the official company. Check for spelling mistakes and also other apps made by the developer.
5. Extra security measures
Finally, there are some basics that should be adhered to which can protect your day-to-day data and accounts as well as your crypto.
- Never click links on emails you are unsure of where they originate from.
- Set up Two Factor Authentication (2FA), this means hackers would need your phone to hack you even if they have all your other account details.
- Don’t click popups or links that come up on the internet or social media
- Be cautious of any messages you receive from people who say they can ‘make you money fast’. These have become popular across social media and utilize fake accounts to try and get your money.
A spokesperson from Smart Betting Guide commented: “Hacks, scams and rug pulls not only pose a threat to individual investors but cast a shadow on the broader narrative of cryptocurrency as a revolutionary force in finance. They erode trust, stifle innovation, and impede the progress towards a more inclusive and decentralized financial future. Therefore, the task at hand goes beyond personal security; it is a shared responsibility to fortify the foundations upon which the future of finance stands.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
Three bellwether stocks lifted the NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange by 0.62 per cent on Friday, December 12 with the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) jumping by 22.20 points to 3,600.43 points from 3,578.23 points.
In the same vein, the market capitalisation of the trading platform increased by N13.28 billion to close at N2.154 trillion from the previous day’s N2.140 trillion.
During the session, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc went up by N2.53 to close at N39.71 per share compared with the previous day’s N37.18 per share, Geo-Fluids Plc added 35 Kobo to its price to finish at N5.00 per unit versus Thursday’s closing price of N4.65 per unit, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by 23 Kobo appreciation to sell at N60.23 per share versus N60.00 per share.
It was observed that yesterday, the price of Golden Capital Plc went down by N1.05 to N9.45 per unit from N10.50 per unit, and UBN Propertiy Plc declined by 21 Kobo to N2.01 per share from the N2.22 per share it was traded a day earlier.
There was a significant improvement in the level of activity for the day, as the volume of transactions increased by 6.2 per cent to 37.4 million units from the previous day’s 35.2 million units, the value of trades went up by 265.1 per cent to N4.9 billion from N1.4 billion, and the number of deals soared by 13.80 per cent to 33 deals from 29 deals.
Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company (InfraCredit) Plc ended the last trading day of this week as the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units valued at N16.4 billion, the second spot was taken by Okitipupa Plc with 178.9 million units traded for N9.5 billion, and third space was occupied by a new comer in MRS Oil Plc with 36.1 million units worth N4.9 billion.
InfraCredit Plc also finished the session as the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 5.8 billion units transacted for N16.4 billion, followed by Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc with 1.2 billion units valued at N420.3 million, and Impresit Bakolori Plc with 537.0 million units sold for N524.9 million.
By Dipo Olowookere
The bullish run on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited continued on Friday with a further 1.00 per cent growth buoyed by gains recorded by Guinness Nigeria, Champion Breweries, and others.
Data showed that the consumer goods space expanded by 1.53 per cent during the last trading session of the week, as the insurance counter grew by 0.51 per cent, and the industrial goods sector marginally gained 0.01 per cent.
However, the banking index depreciated by 0.54 per cent due to a pocket of profit-taking, and the energy industry shrank by 0.09 per cent, while the commodity sector closed flat.
Guinness Nigeria gained 10.00 per cent to trade at N217.80, Morison Industries rose by 9.84 per cent to N4.69, Champion Breweries jumped by 9.69 per cent to N14.15, Austin Laz grew by 9.66 per cent to N2.27, and C&I Leasing appreciated by 9.62 per cent to N5.70.
Conversely, eTranzact lost 10.00 per cent to finish at N12.60, Chellarams slumped by 9.00 per cent to N13.20, Eunisell depleted by 9.89 per cent to N75.15, Africa Prudential moderated by 9.77 per cent to N12.00, and DAAR Communications decreased by 9.18 per cent to 89 Kobo.
The busiest stock on Friday was Access Holdings with 107.6 million units sold for N2.2 billion, Consolidated Hallmark traded 59.9 million units worth N245.8 million, Zenith Bank transacted 48.2 million units valued at N3.1 billion, Transcorp Power transacted 42.8 million units for N13.1 billion, and Champion Breweries exchanged 36.4 million units valued at N510.2 million.
At the close of business, a total of 602.8 million units worth N30.7 billion exchanged hands in 20,550 deals yesterday, in contrast to the 529.7 million units valued at N12.3 billion traded in 18,159 deals on Thursday, representing a surge in the trading volume, value, and number of deals by 13.80 per cent, 149.59 per cent, and 13.17 per cent apiece.
Business Post reports that the All-Share Index (ASI) soared during the session by 1,485.89 points to 149,436.48 points from 147,950.59 points and the market capitalisation moved up by N945 billion to N95.264 trillion from N94.319 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
An intervention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the foreign exchange (FX) market eased the pressure on the Naira on Friday.
The apex bank sold forex to banks and other authorised dealers in the official window to defend the domestic currency, helping to calm the FX demand pressure, with the Nigerian currency appreciating against the US Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM) by 0.11 per cent or N1.57 to sell at N1,454.50/$1 compared with Thursday’s closing price of N1,456.07/$1.
Also, the domestic currency improved its value against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday by N3.95 to close at N1,946.15/£1 versus the previous day’s N1,950.11/£1 but lost 10 Kobo on the Euro to quote at N1,706.46/€1 compared with the N1,706.36/€1 it was exchanged a day earlier.
At the black market segment, the Nigerian Naira maintained stability against the Dollar during the session at N1,470/$1 and also traded flat at N1,463/$1 at the GTBank forex counter.
Despite the sigh of relief, demand pressures outweighed the robust supply from the CBN and inflow from offshore players looking to participate at the OMO bills auction.
Gross FX reserves increased for the twenty fifth consecutive week, growing by a strong $396.84 million week-on-week to $45.44 billion.
As for the cryptocurrency market, it was down on Friday as pressure remained after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Wednesday, which hinted at a possible rate cut pause in January. As a result, markets now expect only two rate cuts in 2026 instead of three.
However, Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee, who was against a December rate cut, said he expects more in 2026 than the current median projection.
Ethereum (ETH) slumped by 5.1 per cent to $3,090.61, Solana (SOL) declined by 4.5 per cent to $132.79, Cardano (ADA) depreciated by 3.8 per cent to $0.4103, and Dogecoin (DOGE) dropped 2.5 per cent to trade at $0.1373.
In addition, Bitcoin (BTC) lost 2.4 per cent to sell at $90,342.74, Litecoin (LTC) tumbled by 1.9 per cent to $81.86, Binance Coin (BNB) fell by 0.6 per cent to $886.93, and Ripple (XRP) slipped by 0.5 per cent to $2.02, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 each.
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