NGRAVE’s crypto security study shows 54% of hard wallet owners’ keys are vulnerable NGRAVE’s crypto security study shows 54% of hard wallet owners’ keys are vulnerable
Ngrave’s 2022 Crypto Security Self-Audit report revealed that 54% of crypto investors leave assets vulnerable by using paper backups for security keys.
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Updated: Apr. 5, 2022 at 3:27 pm UTC
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Seven out of 10 crypto investors own a hardware wallet, out of which, 54% keep their backup phrases on paper, while 50% of these investors keep their full backup in one place, according to a survey by Ngrave.
NGrave‘s 2022 Crypto Security Self-Audit report reveals that 50% of hardware wallet owners’ keys would be compromised if someone were to find their backup. The company’s CEO Ruben Merre commented on the report and said:
“The results of our annual Security Self-Audit show that there are glaring gaps in the methods investors are using to ensure the security of their assets, especially at a time when high-profile and high-valueN breaches are becoming increasingly common.”
He further elaborated:
“It is clear that there is much to be done to secure the crypto assets of investors the world over, if the industry is to avoid the hacks that we have seen in recent months.”
As attacks on wallets remain to be a serious problem for crypto holders, the community has been working on new methods to prevent irreversible losses and increase wallet security.
Other Findings
The study included over 2000 unique respondents from 87 countries, mainly Europe and North America.
The numbers showed that almost half of the participants hold less than $20,000 in their portfolio, while one out of five investors has more than $100,000.
66% of the participants indicated that they prefer to buy and hold instead of trading. Merre referred to this percentage and said:
“The behaviour of crypto investors remains stable compared to 2021. Given the nature of the survey, an overrepresentation of nontrader profiles was expected and confirmed.”
When it comes to storage, the numbers indicate that 76% of the respondents have a part of their portfolio stored on an exchange, and almost all of them (92%) use a two-factor authentication method.
Author 
Zeynep Geylan
Zeynep is an academic who turned to crypto in 2018. Originating in social sciences, she is especially interested in the social impact of blockchain and cryptocurrencies and strongly believes in their transmuting power.
