What is cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrency is a digital asset recorded on a blockchain or related ledger. It is not a bank deposit and its price can move sharply. Ownership and transfer rules differ from traditional accounts.
Major risks
- Market risk: prices may fall quickly and permanently.
- Platform risk: exchange outages, freezes, hacks, or insolvency can affect access to funds.
- Regulatory risk: availability and legality vary by country.
- Operational risk: wrong networks, wrong addresses, and lost keys may be irreversible.
Account security checklist
- Use a unique password and authenticator-app 2FA.
- Enable anti-phishing codes and withdrawal whitelists when available.
- Keep recovery codes offline and never in screenshots.
- Never share passwords, verification codes, private keys, or seed phrases.
Common scams
Watch for fake support accounts, guaranteed-return offers, romance-investment schemes, copied login pages, fake KYC agents, and airdrops that ask for seed phrases.