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How Do Crypto Wallet Work?
You must first purchase a wallet to store your virtual currency to use a cryptocurrency. It also has a unique address, just like a bank account. Depending on the coin, it may resemble this. It appears to be a completely random sequence of characters and numbers, but there is more to it. The first thing we need to figure out is how these things are manufactured. Anyone can create a new wallet by following a precise procedure to generate a public and private key pair. In the case of Bitcoin or Ethereum, this is accomplished by using an elliptical curve digital signature method. That’s a mouthful, but the bottom line is that the process will generate a private key and a corresponding public key. These keys are mathematically related to one another. You can use the private key to generate the public key. However, you cannot convert a public key to a private key. These two keys now have a distinct function. The public key will serve as the address for your wallet, similar to your bank account number. And the private key is your way of verifying that you own the wallet and hence have the authority to spend the money contained within it. To summarize, public keys can be shared with anybody, whereas private keys must be kept confidential unless you want others to decide what you should do with your money. So far, everything is going well. But there are a few fascinating side consequences to this approach that I’d like to mention. Why Are Crypto Wallets Important? To begin with, anyone can create an infinite number of wallets on their own computers. It is only limited by the speed with which your computer can generate key pairs. Nobody will be aware of the existence of your wallet unless it receives some coins. A cryptocurrency, after all, merely keeps track of transactions between wallets. It does not provide a complete list of all existing wallets. So, if your newly constructed wallet has not yet been used in a transaction, it simply does not exist in the eyes of the outside world. Consider the blockchain to be a big spreadsheet with transactions flowing from one wallet to the next. The blockchain itself is unconcerned with whether or not these wallets exist. When you wish to spend coins in a wallet, you need to confirm your ownership. And you can only do so using the private key linked to the wallet’s address. Another unintended consequence is that you can send money to a wallet address that does not exist. Again, because a blockchain does not maintain a list of valid addresses, it cannot verify that you are moving coins to a valid address. If you send money to an invalid address, it will be lost unless someone can generate the private key for that address. For the time being, which isn’t really achievable due to the way the algorithm works. In fact, this is known as “coin burning,” It is occasionally done on purpose by cryptocurrency projects seeking to limit overall supply and boost the value of their coin. Alternatively, they do it to eliminate coins that were not distributed at the original coin offering. The final cool side effect I’d like to discuss is that you can construct a wallet while offline, then provide that address to someone else who will be able to send coins to it. When you go back online, you can spend the coins using the private key from that wallet. Isn’t it cool? So, if you want to keep some funds safe, you can establish a wallet while offline, print out your public and private keys, destroy the key on your computer, and transfer coins to it. This is known as a “paper wallet,” and it is the most extreme but extremely secure method of holding currency. So that was a quick rundown of how wallets function in a cryptocurrency. How do you utilize a cryptocurrency wallet? Crypto wallets range in complexity from basic apps to more advanced security solutions. Among the several types of wallets available are: Paper wallets: This makes using your crypto more difficult, as it can only be used as digital money on the internet. Keys (Crypto) are written on a physical medium, such as paper, and stored safely. Hardware wallets: Keys are saved on a thumb-drive device kept in a secure location and are only connected to a computer when you wish to access your cryptocurrency. The idea is to find a happy medium between safety and convenience. Online wallets: Keys are saved in an app or other software in online wallets; search for one that uses two-step encryption. This makes sending, receiving, and utilizing cryptocurrency as simple as any online bank account, payment system, or brokerage. Bottom Line … Continued
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