Generating and Storing the Seed

Probably the most important reason why hardware wallets are more secure than software wallets is the secure generation of the seed itself. As we have already explained in the book – whoever owns the seed also owns the private keys, and therefore all the bitcoins assigned to them. Unlike software wallets, with a hardware wallet the seed never enters the online environment. This means it cannot be captured by malware, viruses, or anyone monitoring your computer. This is one of the most fundamental security differences.

If you previously used a software wallet, I recommend generating a completely new seed when switching to a hardware wallet. A seed from a software wallet has already been in an online environment – which means its security is potentially compromised. Even if you never sent it to anyone, it could have been captured at the time of its creation or while being stored on a device.

When creating a seed on a hardware wallet, under no circumstances should you ever enter it into a computer, phone, or the internet. Do not take a photo of it, do not store it in the cloud, on a USB drive, in Word, and do not send it to yourself by email. These common mistakes often turn out to be fatal.

Every hardware wallet usually comes with a piece of paper on which you are supposed to write down the seed. Do it with a pen – clearly and carefully – and store it securely. Remember that if you lose the seed, you lose access to your bitcoins. The seed is the only way to recover your bitcoins – for example, if you lose or damage your device. Under no circumstances should you give it to anyone.

You only need the seed in two cases:

if your device is damaged or lost (you can use it for recovery),
if you want to restore your bitcoins on another device (for example, a new Trezor).

Even though it may be confusing at first, that piece of paper with the seed represents your bitcoins, not the hardware wallet itself. If you lose the device, you simply buy a new one, enter your seed, and restore everything.

If any website, application, or email – no matter how trustworthy it looks – ever asks you to enter your seed, it is 100% a scam. No hardware wallet manufacturer, including Trezor or Ledger, will ever ask you for your seed. I repeat this once again, because it is the most important thing you must remember from the entire book:

Whoever has the seed owns the bitcoin.

It should also be added that not only losing the seed is a problem; excessive caution can be just as dangerous. There are cases where people intentionally rearranged the order of words in their seed or invented “improvements” they believed they would remember. They won’t. And especially not when they need it most. The internet is full of stories about people losing their bitcoins because they could not remember exactly what they had changed.

If you want to take protection one step further, you can invest in special metal seed storage solutions. These are durable plates or word-stamping kits that protect your seed from water, fire, mold, or other natural disasters.

If you truly want to be cautious, choose better physical security rather than making changes you will not remember.

So here is the Bitcoin Ten Commandments:

Never store your seed in digital form.
Never share your seed with another person.
Never send your seed to any website or “support”.
Always write your seed down clearly and accurately.
Never change the order of the words or replace them.
Never leave your seed lying around in plain sight.
Never enter into a hardware wallet a seed that was generated by a software wallet.
Occasionally check that your written seed is still legible.
Never use unknown or untrustworthy wallets.
Think about a secure way to pass on your seed in the event of death.

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