NFT Security: How to Protect Your Digital Assets

NFTs represent unique digital ownership—art, collectibles, gaming items, domain names. Protecting them requires the same rigor as protecting fungible crypto.

Why NFTs Are Targeted

High-value NFTs (Bored Apes, CryptoPunks, Art Blocks) can sell for tens of thousands. Attackers use phishing, social engineering, and malicious smart contracts to steal them.

Common Attack Vectors

• Phishing sites: Fake marketplace clones that prompt wallet connections and malicious approvals
• Discord/Twitter scams: Fake minting links, compromised moderator accounts, impersonated artists
• Malicious contracts: "Free mint" contracts that include hidden transfer approvals
• Signature requests: eth_sign and other opaque signing requests that can drain wallets

Protection Strategies

• Hardware wallet: Store valuable NFTs on a Ledger. Signing happens on-device; malware can't steal keys
• Separate wallets: Use a "vault" wallet for storage and a "hot" wallet for minting. Transfer valuable NFTs to the vault
• Verify everything: Check contract addresses on Etherscan. Verify collection pages on OpenSea/Blur
• Revoke approvals: Regularly check and revoke token approvals using revoke.cash or Etherscan

Ledger + NFTs

Ledger Live displays NFTs in your portfolio. You can view, send, and manage them with hardware security. For high-value collections, a dedicated Ledger as an NFT vault is recommended.