Ledger CTO Explains Why Smartphones Won't Ever Be Fully Safe for Using Crypto

gepubliceerd op by Cointele | gepubliceerd op

Cointelegraph interviewed the CTO of Ledger, Charles Guillemet, to learn more about the best practices in securing cryptocurrencies for average users.

Ledger is a major producer of hardware wallets, which store cryptocurrency seeds on a dedicated device.

As Guillemet explained, hardware wallets protect against possible malware on the user's computer or mobile device.

Ledger uses a chip based on Secure Element technology, which he says is an ideal protection against physical tampering.

Recent moves by Samsung to integrate similar technology in their blockchain-enabled phones carry the promise of making smartphones just as safe as hardware wallets, but Guillemet warned that they won't solve every problem.

"In terms of storage, there is no debate. The seed is inside this secure element, and it is very comparable to the secure element that you can find in the [Ledger] Nano S.".

The proposition changes when the secure element must be unlocked to make a transaction.

The problem is the display of the phone, where Android does not give any guarantees that the data shown on it will be accurate - a feature called "Trusted Display."

Ledger's wallets, on the other hand, were developed with the necessary Trusted Display feature, said Guillemet.

On mobile phones, no matter if it's an Android or an iPhone phone, "It's very difficult to have secure applications," according to Guillemet.

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