Blockchain Wallet(Types, Uses, Installation) - Steemit Crypto Academy Season 4 - Homework Post for Task 9.
(1) How do you store/secure your keys? What are the different forms of Private Key(Examples/Screenshot)? Download & Install TronLink Wallet(Android/iOS/Extension)? How do you store the key(Hint- write it down on a notepad, demonstrate it with examples)? Which form of the key are you comfortable with to handle your TronLink Wallet? Include Screenshots & hide/blur the sensitive information.
INTRODUCTION
Keys are set of characters used in blockchains to perform transactions and manage crypto. Keys are very vital,they are the account itself. Another person other than the account owner having access to they keys means having access to the account and the token in the account,the owner might lose the account. That is why keys are to be kept safe and secure. How can keys be stored and secured?
HOW I STORE AND SECURE KEYS
I usually do one thing immediately after downloading an app and setting a password or a key on it, be it Facebook, Tron wallet or any blockchain, like steemit- that is writing all my personal keys or passwords on my diary. I designated a diary specifically for the purpose of storing my keys. I normally write down my keys or passwords in this designated diary and then keep this diary in a safe place,that no other person have access to. While writing the keys or password,I do so in a manner that is only understood by me. Even if another person sees the diary,he wouldn't know what the keys are for.
•STORE KEYS ON GOOGLE DRIVE:-
After writing my keys in a diary, the next thing I do is take a picture then of those keys and upload them to Google Drive. It is widely known that Google Drive is an online data storage and I am making use of it. I usually upload photos of my keys and recourse to it whenever I forget my password or I can't find my diary,I get those keys from my online drive. Google drive is a very safe and secure place,when it comes to securing keys,and it's good. Keys can be retrieved from Google Drive at any time.
•STORE MY KEYS ON MY EMAIL:-
The next place I normally store my keys is on the draft of my email. I can retrieve it from there if I should forget my keys or loss my diary.
•Blockchain Wallet:- There is a tool that is suitable for storing keys, this tool is known as blockchain wallet. This wallet is a digitalized wallet which allows users to manage their cryptocurrencies. It is used in storing keys-these are the private and public keys.
The blockchain wallet is an application that is decentralized (dApp) on the top of Blockchain to help a user manage crypto. It is powered by a cryptographic signature which makes it a secure ledger. Blockchain is immutable,this makes it impossible to tamper with,as data can not be erased. Transactions perform in blockchains have no third party, they happen peer-to-peer. Blockchain wallet has absolute control over the assets.
PRIVATE KEYS
Blockchain wallets are wallets that are based on keys. Keys perform specific functions, and are divided into private and public keys.
Private keys as the name implies should remain private at all times. There is no room for keys loss in a blockchain-based wallet,as such they should be kept safe and secure. Private keys are likened to signature,OTP,Pin and transaction password in a banking world.
The private keys are to be kept secret,as they are used for authentication and encryption. The private keys are of different forms, let's have a look at these forms.
THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF PRIVATE KEY
There are three forms of private key: a string of alphanumeric characters/private key,seed/mnemonic key and Json File/keystone File key.
•A string of alphanumeric characters/private key:- A string of alphanumeric characters/ private key is a random created key that uses cryptographic functions as soon as a blockchain wallet is created. This key unlocks crypto assets,and allows users to spend their crypto assets.
This key acts as a master password for any cryptocurrency Blockchain supplied to its associated public key in a very simple cryptocurrency storage arrangement. Without further security, if someone obtains your private key, they will be able to transfer the whole contents of your wallet to a new address. Your holdings would be unrecoverable because chargebacks are impossible with blockchain-based cryptocurrencies.
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Source
•Seed/Mnemonic key:- Seed/Mnemonic phrase key can be used in performing the same function as that of a private key. Mnemonic key is easy to handle, readable by humans,it can easily be memorized. Normally, Mnemonic phrases are 12,15,18,21 and 25 words long. Mnemonic key can be used in restoring a wallet, resetting password,and generating wallet addresses.
Private keys are not very user-friendly in their raw form, despite the fact that hexadecimal integers can be written in less characters than decimal values. A string of 64 seemingly random characters is something the ordinary person isn't used to dealing with. As a result, instead of a private key, many modern digital currency wallet systems supply customers with a mnemonic phrase.
•Json File/Keystone File key:- This key and the password set by the user helps restore wallet wallet if keystone File was backed up. Keystore is a component that manages the blockchain account address.
The Keystore is a JSON-formatted encrypted version of your private key. It's a fancier version of your private key that's secured with a password of your choice. When this Keystore is combined with a password, it takes on the appearance of a private key. Because it requires a password to access, the keystore is safer than the private key. When creating your password, make sure it's unique and not the same as the passwords for your email or other social media accounts. Instead, a new password with a combination of symbols, characters, and numbers should be used.
Download & Install TronLink Wallet(Android/iOS/Extension)? How do you store the key(Hint- write it down on a notepad, demonstrate it with examples)?
Now I donwload tronlink wallet step by step and create account on it.
STEP 1
The first thing I did was opening my mobile play store app and search Tronlink wallet. After that,I downloaded and installed it.
STEP 2
After that,I opened tronlink app and clicked on the create account option.
STEP 3
After that,I read the terms and condition and then agreed it.
STEP 4
In the last step,I wrote a secure password and backed up my mnemonic key and write it down on a paper and click on the next step option. My tronlink wallet was successfully created.
(taking screenshots during backup was not allowed)
Which form of the key are you comfortable with to handle your TronLink Wallet? Include Screenshots & hide/blur the sensitive information.
I used mnemonic key to handle my tronlink wallet. Because it is written in English words and the English words are very easy to understand. Everyone who speaks English easily understands Mnemonic key . while the private and other keys are not very easy to understand. Private and other keys are very difficult to understand.
It is also easy to write this key in a diary because it is in English and we can write and understand English in a diary and we can also memorize it in a good way. And if we talk about other keys, They are very difficult and to understand and memorize.So this is the reason why I value this key more because it is like a human friend and I use this key. Besides, our brains catch English very quickly. If we want to keep it safe in our brains, we can do it too.
CONCLUSION
This lecture was very helpful for me and I got to see a lot of new things from it. I learned from this lecture how many types of keys are in cryptocurrency and how to use them. Also, I learned how we can download tronlink wallet in our mobile and It was a very good lecture. I liked it very much. Thanks so much professor @sapwood for this lecture, thanks @steemitblog for the golden opportunity,I am very grateful.
Thank You!
Unless otherwise stated, all the screenshots are from google play store and my TronLink wallet. They are my original works from the mentioned places.
Here is my introductory post
