For beginners, if you don’t have a large amount of funds, it’s enough to just be more mindful of security and use an exchange or a hot wallet (it’s best to choose one that is well-known and trusted, like MetaMask, Trust Wallet, OKX Web3 Wallet, etc.).

But if you really want to use a cold wallet (also known as an offline or hardware wallet) to strengthen the security of your mnemonic/asset, it’s actually quite simple: just use an iPhone to create a cold wallet.

Preparation: An old iPhone that you no longer use.

Step 1: Reset your old iPhone and restore it to factory settings.

Step 2: Remove unnecessary pre-installed apps (system apps don’t need to be deleted, but if you’re into cleaning up, feel free to remove a few). Then, connect to WiFi and download an imToken wallet (or another wallet that supports offline signing, like AirGap Vault).

Step 3: Disconnect the iPhone from the internet, forget the WiFi password, and open the imToken app (if any permissions requests pop up, deny them, and make sure the phone doesn’t connect to the internet).

Step 4: Import your mnemonic or create a new wallet (if you’re worried about losing your phone or it getting damaged, make sure to securely store your mnemonic, such as writing it down and keeping it safe, but never store it digitally on a computer or cloud).

If you’re just holding coins, you can stop here. Just periodically transfer your coins to the wallet address. You can then check your balance using a blockchain explorer or an observation address on another connected phone.

For those who want to make transfers from the cold wallet, continue to the next steps:

Step 5: In imToken, select the appropriate wallet address, such as the Default 1 address (example), then go to the account details page, click “Connect Other Wallet,” and a QR code will appear. As shown below.

Step 6: Now, open the wallet on your other connected phone (like MetaMask, etc.), click “Add Account or Hardware Wallet,” then select “Add Hardware Wallet,” and choose “QR-based” to scan the QR code and pick the Default 1 address from your cold wallet.

Your setup is now complete. The offline phone acts as your cold wallet, and the online phone observes the cold wallet’s address, allowing transfer operations.

Here’s how to transfer assets from the cold wallet:

Step 7: Open the observation wallet on your online phone (MetaMask) for the cold wallet address you paired earlier. To send an ETH transfer, just click “Send.” You’ll see a QR code requesting offline signature approval.

Step 8: On your offline phone (the cold wallet you set up), tap the “Offline Signature” button, confirm the transaction details, and if everything looks good, click “Send.” A new QR code will appear.

Step 9: Go back to your online phone (MetaMask), click “Get Signature,” then scan the offline signature QR code from the previous step. Next, click “Send Transaction.” At this point, your cold wallet’s assets will be transferred (you can track the transaction status and progress in MetaMask or on a blockchain explorer).

And that’s it! Congratulations, you now have your own cold wallet.

Just a reminder, imToken is used here for demonstration purposes; it’s a wallet developed by a Chinese team, so the experience may be more familiar with local preferences. Since it’s offline, security is solid, and imToken can’t steal your coins while offline. However, I’m not sure about the security when used online (Chinese people don’t deceive other Chinese people).

Alternatively, you can choose other wallets supporting offline signatures to create a mobile cold wallet, like AirGap Vault (search for more details on Google).

For mobile hot wallets, I often use Trust, MetaMask, and OKX Web3 Wallet. For cold wallets, I mostly use Trust (I don’t need to make transfers with cold wallets). Trust is owned by Binance, having been acquired in 2018.

Friendly tip: it’s recommended to use an iPhone to create a mobile cold wallet, not Android, purely for security reasons. No further explanation needed!

Safety Reminder: A cold wallet (also known as an offline wallet) helps keep your mnemonic or private key offline, but it doesn’t guarantee that your funds are completely safe. It’s important to also consider your personal risk awareness. For example, if you authorize your cold wallet to send 20,000 USDT to a fraudulent project’s address, once the offline wallet signs the transaction, the 20,000 USDT will be transferred, and you won’t be able to get it back. The bottom line is that when you sign a transaction, make sure to carefully review the details—check the amount and ensure the address is correct to truly protect your assets.

Disclaimer:

1. This article is republished from [话李话外DAO]. The copyright belongs to the original author [话李话外DAO]. If you have any objection to the reprint, please contact Gate Learn team, the team will handle it as soon as possible according to relevant procedures.
2. Liability Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not constitute investment advice.
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