Cryptocurrencies are growing in popularity; more and more people are now interested in using bitcoin or another digital currency to trade, invest or use in their daily life.
Only recently, Elon Musk invested a significant sum of $1.5 billion in cryptocurrency through his company, Tesla Inc. This move prompted even more interest as bitcoin prices surged.
As with any other financial transaction, it is important to be aware that there are some criminals out there ready to scam unsuspecting people.
So, if you’re new to cryptocurrencies, how do you stay safe and keep your funds protected? Here are a few tips:
Select a trusted Platform
There are several exchange platforms available to transact on, however, some offer more security than the others. In other words, before adopting a crypto exchange platform to transact on, you need to know about its security measures as well as its fees and pricing, coin variety etc.
For instance, on Paxful, a global peer-to-peer finance platform, your account has two-factor authentication enabled. Paxful also uses ID and address verification for customers and monitors transactions in real time, which means it can identify and stop suspicious activity quickly.
Know who you’re buying from: On some exchanges, you can check out a seller’s record and the feedback they’ve had from other users. If someone has never made a payment using online wallets before, think about limiting the trade amount as a safety check.
Some platforms act as the escrow on the transaction which means that it holds the bitcoin until both sides have completed what they need to do. This helps ensure the transaction is safe.
On Paxful for example, the seller cannot cancel the trade; it can only be canceled by the buyer or auto canceled by the system if the payment is not made by the buyer within the payment window.
Explore Storage Options for your Digital Currency
When you buy cryptocurrency, you need to store it in a digital wallet. This can be hardware-based or web-based. Exchanges often give you your own wallet but sometimes these are vulnerable to hackers.
Check out what security measures are in place before deciding if that’s the place you want to store your funds. Paxful uses BitGo as a wallet service provider, which is one of the most secure and high-tech services on the market. If you are in crypto for the long haul, think about getting your own digital wallet.
About Paxful
Paxful is a peer-to-peer finance platform for people to make payments, transactions, and send money by buying and selling cryptocurrencies as a means of exchange.
Founded in 2015 by Ray Youssef and Artur Schaback, Paxful’s mission is to help everyone have equal access to finance no matter who or where they are.
Over 5 million people use Paxful to buy and sell Bitcoin (BTC) and Tether (USDT) with almost 400 different payment methods.
Ray Youssef, co-founder, and CEO of Paxful, set up the Built with Bitcoin Foundation to help people have access to education and water. To date, the foundation has built four schools (two in Rwanda, one in Kenya, and one in Nigeria); has provided health and food supplies in South Africa, Kenya, and Nigeria and education supplies in India to people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Built with Bitcoin Foundation is funded by Paxful and in part by donations from Paxful users.
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