Our smartphones are capable of many things, and payments are just a small part of what they can really do. For example, you can use your phone to talk to your friends and family, to browse social media apps, use it to measure lengths, angles, to watch the stars in the sky closely, listen to music, and many more actions, including using it as a digital wallet. If you have an iOS device, you can use Apple Pay, or Google Pay if you have an Android device.
A digital wallet is an application that you can use to store your bank cards, no matter if they are credit or debit, and use the phone to make a payment, instead of having a wallet full of cash and cards. The e-wallets are often mentioned when talking about cryptocurrencies, as the safest way to keep your crypto savings far away from hackers. If you visit a reliable and well reviewed site-app, you will see that it’s available for Android and iOS devices (that’s a good sign!), and you can use it to exchange the cryptos for euros, so you can then use that money for what you need. It’s another way to turn your phone into a digital wallet, with the crypto money included.
It has a lot of benefits, for example, you can make direct purchases, without having to enter the account number to make a transaction. By using verified and secure apps, you can be sure that your money is protected, but keep in mind that these apps store a lot of sensitive information related to your identity, so you must be sure that you really want to do that. In most cases digital wallets are safe, but once you use them with cryptocurrencies, they become more fragile and easier to hack.
Also, there are a few other risks of this, including:
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Losing your phone can make things very complicated
When your phone is not in your hands, no matter how many layers of protection and authentication you have, it’s just a small piece of technology that can be used against you. Just one small moment is enough, so your phone is stolen or lost and all the data on it is now in the hands of some stranger.
In most cases when it’s stolen, it’s a better option for you to sign out all the apps immediately, using your Apple or Google account to do that. That means you will maybe have to call your bank or try to remove the synchronization with the digital wallet using your PC. Then, you can report a theft to the police, hoping that their monitoring systems will locate the phone. If you don’t have a passcode or face or fingerprint recognition, you can lock the phone through the computer.
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Cyber thieves are all around you
All the relevant and verified wallets give a high percentage of security to their users, and all the data is stored with strong encryption. Also, payment information is stored on tokens, and it’s not that easy for one wallet to be hacked, but at the same time, it’s not very difficult too. For example, if you use it with a public Wi-Fi network, the hackers can create some breaches and access some data that will then be helpful for them to discover all the other things they need, so they can get in your phone.
One of the solutions is to use a VPN for your phone because that’s one way to protect your data from storing in random networks. Most people keep their phones connected to the Internet all the time, and when you join a public Wi-Fi, it’s better to turn on your VPN browsing mode, without having to expose your data.
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Protect it from malware
Sometimes, criminals can access all your private data without physically holding your phone. Malware infections are well-known in the world of technology, and in most cases, the users are those who are letting them in with a simple click on some link that looks familiar, but it’s sent from a third-party sender.
You may not be aware of what is happening, but once the malware is in, your details are accessible to the hackers. One of the good things, in this case, is that phones are less vulnerable to malware compared to computers, and if we compare different systems, we can conclude that iPhones are safer, because Apple has stronger safety standards, compared to other tech giants.
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Compatibility issues
Not every store is ready to embrace this type of technology, which means you will anyway have to bring cash and cards with you. Also, since it’s in a development phase, some of these things may not be compatible with global payment systems. Also, if you choose Apple Pay, it works with Apple devices only, and if you decide to move to another phone, you will not be able to sync the data. Some wallets are compatible with all the devices, but the security question is always present because they are able for more devices and operational systems. Another problem that may occur is that some (or most of them) stores don’t have an appropriate system to accept paying with a digital wallet, especially when you use it to convert the crypto savings into fiat currencies.
Probably, we mentioned a few things that really seem risky and frightening, but this shouldn’t change your mind to embrace the future of payment methods. We have a lot of time to hope that soon all of these risks will be solved, and many people will accept this important development as a part of their lives. When it comes to your smartphone, probably it’s smart enough so it can have built-in protection, that together with the authorization you are giving to the apps, will help you protect your private data, including your virtual money too. Anyway, you have to be exceptionally careful when it comes to cryptocurrencies, because they are a little bit different compared to the fiat money banking systems, so you can be sure your phone is secure and protected all the time.
If you are interested in learning more and maybe investing in the crypto currencies on the Brazilian market, visit sites like https://criptoeconomia.com.br.
