Post
Topic
Board Hardware wallets
Merits 1 from 1 user
Re: Ledger Keycard bypass
by
n0nce
on 21/07/2022, 18:50:53 UTC
⭐ Merited by PrivacyG (1)
These are the reasons I don't recommend Ledger; a bug in the very first Ledger models, not so much.
Fair enough.  Should however raise one idea up for all of us though.  Even if our coins are on a Hardware Wallet, even on a fully Open Source one, it does not mean security is top-level.  And to be honest with you, it kind of sucks knowing that I can not take my Hardware Wallets right now and safely bury them underground in a time capsule, because I unknowingly kind of bought them for permanent storage of coins and now I have to take care of potential future security issues.
Well, this is software on an electronic device. Nobody should assume any hardware and any software to be 100% secure for eternity. That's one of the reasons I said this in the past.
I recently thought about this and maybe it helps people think of hardware wallets a bit differently: think of the device mostly as a signer. Don't rely on it not breaking, not getting lost or not ceasing to turn on, to be able to access your coins; instead, rely on your seed backup(s) and use the device as a convenient way to utilize said seed in everyday scenarios.

A hardware wallet is a pretty secure way to hold your seed in an electronic device, which gives you the benefit of being able to quickly access it (create a transaction) without having to transcribe a seed phrase from paper or metal.

For long-term storage (as in 'bury and forget it' like you described), there's nothing better than an offline-generated seed phrase that is not stored on an electronic device of any kind.

Would be cool if a Hardware Wallet maker decides to build a modular Hardware Wallet so that we do not need to upgrade by purchasing new Hardware Wallets but simply by upgrading parts, similarly to a PC.  Need more space?  Need a better processor?  Need a new display?  Open it up and switch the components all by yourself.  Would buy one without a doubt.  I am pretty disappointed that some of my Hardware Wallets will become unusable within an year or so unless I constantly update them.  You can leave an airgapped PC for a decade and still use your Bitcoin.  When it comes to Hardware Wallets .. not so much.
I don't honestly see the utility of this. Since the firmware doesn't really get more complex over time, processor upgrades won't be needed. As evidenced by ancient microprocessor technology in both Ledger Nano S and Trezor One. They work just like they did when they launched. Maybe Nano S less so due to the whole 'altcoin apps' story. It's like trying to run an old BASIC game on an old CPU; the same old software runs just as well on the same old hardware as it did in the past.

The only reason for upgradeability that I could see having a use case would be storage, for storing more altcoins (thus more seeds). But then again you can easily get a few GB of flash that costs nothing and will suffice for the next gazillion altcoins.