Bitcoin only, not crypto, not nfts, not blockchain technology, not alt coins, not meme coins, not defi
Some thoughts on taking self custody:
Keep your savings in cold storage/offline.
Never put the keys to your bitcoin online or on any device other than: an open source bitcoin only reputable hardware wallet vetted by multiple credentialed and reputable bitcoin only computer scientists/professionals.
Blockstream, coinkite, bitbox, foundation and seed signer come to mind as good options to look into. Bitkey might be good if you're less tech savvy or want an easy entry to self custody.
Casa and unchained are good for collaborative custy/multi sig and information/guidance on self custody. The bitcoin way and Btc sessions on youtube are good tutors/guides
Write/engrave your seed phrase and your passphrase (your "keys") on steel. Break it into parts and put it in multiple separate locations. Even changing one letter can make the 12 words useless. Be careful.
Changing/obscuring a letter or a few words can add a layer of protection but can also overcomplicate things for yourself and cause you to loose access to your bitcoin.
Be careful, go slow, double check stuff, try it out before using it, start over or redo it if needed, don't overcomplicate it.
People memorize books, it's possible to memorize this stuff but it's highly recommended by everyone I've learned from, for obvious reasons not to rely or put faith in your memory alone.
Erase the hardware wallet after you use it to derive the seed, add your passphrase and engrave your keys in something safe and secure so your keys aren't stored on any device.
Your keys no matter what wallet you used to generate them can be uploaded to any bitcoin wallet of any brand if needed.
Having your watch only wallet link makes it so you can look at your balance and derive addresses to deposit into your account without needing to use a hardware wallet every time you want to add money to your cold storage.
You can copy the alphanumeric route for your "watch only" wallet, some devices have it as a qr code.
You could also take pictures of or otherwise record the qr codes or the alphanumeric codes of your receive addresses generated on the hardware wallet. Then you could doublecheck them with your watch only wallet.
Your wallet id is a short randomly generated alphanumeric code that can help verify you are using the correct watch only wallet but your wallet id cannot be used to derive your keys.
Some people might prefer to verify their receive address every time by using a hardware wallet. Some may find it more risky to upload their keys to obtain an address.
Some might put the amount they want to save in a wallet, never add to it and keep the seed phrase ultra secure for years and or plan to pass the 12 words and passphrase to their kids.
Study collaborative custody/multi sig if you want. It can be good for security, businesses, couples, family, and or inheritance
If you share your keys with anyone, plan on your bitcoin moving to an account you no longer have access to/keys for
Not your keys, not your bitcoin
Study cryptography. Watch podcasts, blockstream has a good book on cryptography to learn different ways to store your keys.
Don't trust me, verify for yourself, I'm not an expert and am still learning. Just hoping to provide some ideas/information I have gathered and food for thought
Bitcoin only, learn why and how, study #bitcoin
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