1. Why safety is essential

Buying Bitcoin is easy. But keeping it safe requires a bit of understanding.

When you buy Bitcoin on an online platform, your funds remain there under the custody of that platform. In other words, you don't have full ownership of it: you have a promise, not the bitcoins themselves.

However, a platform can be hacked, suspend withdrawals, freeze an account or even go bankrupt. In this case, your funds become inaccessible.

That's why the Bitcoin world often repeats:

“Not your keys, not your coins.”

(If you don't have your keys, you don't “own” your bitcoins.)

2. Understanding keys and wallets

Each bitcoin is associated with a cryptographic address. To spend or move your funds, you need to prove that you own them. That is the role of the private key.

• The public key is like your IBAN: it allows you to receive.
• The private key is like your signature: it proves possession.

As long as this key is kept by a platform, your bitcoins don't really belong to you. Withdrawing them to a personal wallet makes you sovereign.

3. The different forms of wallets

There are several types of wallets, depending on the level of security and comfort desired:

• Software wallet (mobile or computer): practical, but more exposed to piracy.
• Hardware wallet: physical key disconnected from the internet, the safest solution for long-term storage.
• Paper wallet: an old method, consisting in writing down your keys on an offline medium.
• Multisignature: system that requires multiple signatures to move funds (often used by businesses or families).

4. Security best practices

A few simple rules are enough to significantly reduce risks:

• Never share your seed phrase.
• Keep it offline, ideally on a non-digital medium.
• Test small transactions before moving large amounts
• Keep a duplicate copy of the backup, in two separate secure locations.
• Provide for a clear transmission (succession or digital inheritance).

5. Be supported in practice

Securing your bitcoins is not only a question of technique, it is also a question of method and trust.

At NovCoin, we support those who want to understand how personal custody works, learn how to configure their portfolio, and set up a long-term custody strategy, adapted to their profile.

Our approach is educational, neutral and personalized: we do not keep your bitcoins, we help you regain control of them.

6. Safety as a culture

Bitcoin is not just a financial asset: it is a form of digital independence. Learning to secure it means learning to be sovereign in an increasingly connected world.

Buying Bitcoin is a first step. Securing it means giving it meaning and duration.