Keepkey wallet is one of the costliest hardware wallets in the cryptocurrency space with premium looks and a sturdy aluminium case.
In this Keepkey wallet review, we will analyze its features at length and establish if it is the safest option in the market.
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Keepkey wallet has a lot of compelling features, especially with regards to security. But after a thorough review, we have found out that it is not the safest wallet out there. Though it is difficult to compromise the wallet, its main weakness is the unregulated status. A regulated wallet such as the eToro wallet (read the eToro review here) offers an extra layer of safety for users. eToro adheres to the stringent security measures set in place by regulatory authorities to protect user interests.
What is Keepkey Wallet?
What is Keepkey wallet? Keepkey is a hierarchical deterministic (HD) hardware wallet that allows you to store multiple cryptocurrencies and access them on the go. Initially, the Keepkey wallet project was a fork of Trezor wallet. Its developers sought to create a hardware wallet with more premium looks and a larger screen. The essence of the latter was to enhance the user experience in as far as transaction verification is concerned.
It has been in existence since 2015 and in 2017, it was acquired by ShapeShift AG, a Swiss company. ShapeShift is an online platform that allows users to convert cryptocurrencies with ease. As an HD wallet, it can generate and store an unlimited number of private keys and also sign transactions.
Keepkey wallet compatibility
- Windows
- Linux
- MacOS
- Android
Its software part works with Mycelium, MultiBit and Electrum wallets.
What wallet type is Keepkey ?
- Hardware wallet
- Open source
- Multi-currency
- Hierarchical Deterministic (HD)
What cryptocurrencies does the wallet support?
- Bitcoin
- Bitcoin Cash
- Bitcoin Gold
- DASH
- Dogecoin
- Ethereum
- Litecoin
- AELF (ELE)
- Aeterenity (AE)
- Aragon (ANT)
- Augur (REP)
- Basic Attention Token (BAT)
- Binance Coin (BNB)
- Bancor (BNT)
- Civic (CVC)
- Storj (STORJ)
- com (MCO)
- CyberMiles (CMT)
- Dai (DAI)
- Decentraland (MANA)
- DigixDAO (DGD)
- District0x (DNT)
- Edgeless (EDG)
- FirstBlood (1st)
- FunFair (FUN)
- Gifto (GTO)
- Gnosis (GNO)
- Golem (GNT)
- ICONOMI (ICN)
- IOST (IOST)
- iExec (RLC)
- TrueUSD (TUSD)
- Maker (MKR)
- Matchpool (GUP)
- Melon (MLN)
- Metal (MTL)
- Numeraire (NMR)
- OmiseGO (OMG)
- Polymath (POLY)
- Populus (PPT)
- Ripio Credit Network (RCN)
- SALT (SALT)
- SingularDTV (SNGLS)
- SpankChain (SPANK)
- Status (SNT)
- 0x (ZRX)
- 0xBitcoin (0xBTC)
What fees does Keepkey wallet have?
There are no Keepkey wallet fees charged for using the device. However, any transaction you make will attract transaction fees from the blockchain network in question.
How to open your Keepkey Wallet account
Now that we know the basics about the device, let us find out how to open Keepkey wallet.
Step 1: To begin with, you will have to install a Chrome extension (Keepkey client) for the wallet from the Chrome Web Store. Find it here.
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From this point on, all the instructions will appear both on your PC and the device screen. If you get a prompt to update device firmware, click “Update Firmware.” You will get a question asking whether you want to configure an old device recover a new one. Take the first option by long pressing the device button and wait for the update to complete.
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You will then get a prompt to select a desired PIN for securing device access. Be careful with this step since the Keepkey will cipher the digits as an extra safety measure.
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That is how to open a wallet on Keepkey, one of the simplest processes for hardware wallets. Your device is now ready to use, and it’s time to find out how to add currency to Keepkey wallet.
How do I add cryptocurrencies to Keepkey Wallet?
To use your wallet, you first need to get your Keepkey wallet address. In order to do this, you will first need to create an account. During the configuration process, your wallet will by default create a Legacy Bitcoin Account. But you have to create accounts for every individual altcoin. So, before you ask how to transfer Ethereum to Keepkey wallet or how to transfer Ripple to Keepkey wallet, let’s create the relevant accounts.
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To obtain the account address, click on the account and then click “Receive.”
You can now copy the address and paste it on another wallet to send some Ethereum to your Keepkey wallet. Alternatively, you can buy cryptocurrencies on an exchange and send it to your Keepkey wallet using the address. In case you are wondering how to transfer Bitcoin to Keepkey wallet, you simply need to follow the same procedure.
How to send payments on Keepkey wallet?
Let’s now find out how to send payments on Keepkey wallet. Here is the procedure:
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How do I receive payments on wallet?
And now, we want to find out how to receive payments on Keepkey wallet. We will use Bitcoin to illustrate.
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When you do that, you will get your address and a QR code, both on the PC and on the device.
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This could take anywhere between a few seconds and half an hour or more depending on network status.
How safe is Wallet?
Multiple Keepkey safety features work together to keep your cryptocurrency safe. Let us examine one at a time and find out how they function.
Here are the security features that the wallet offers users:
Private Key Storage
During the initialization process of the device, it automatically generates private keys using entropy from the computer and the device. As such, it generates unique, unpredictable keys every time. As an HD device, it can generate an infinite number of private keys and store them. Users’ private keys are never exposed when using the device on a PC as it uses a limited protocol for communication.
PIN Code
Every Keepkey wallet is PIN-protected, securing it from unauthorized use. Without the PIN, no one can access or use the device. Additionally, it also limits PIN entry attempts and increased the timespan between attempts after every wrong entry. By the 27th attempt, the delay time increases to a non-negotiable 388 days.
Recovery Phrase
In addition to the PIN code, you can also generate a 12-word recovery sentence to back up your wallet. Though 12 is the default number of words, the wallet can also support an 18- or 24-word phrase. The sentence generation is a one-time feature that appears during initialization. Its generation makes use of entropy from the device and the computer you are using for setup. It is generated offline and only displayed on the device and not on your PC screen. Consequently, it is never exposed online.
Even during a recovery process, Keepkey uses a cipher to mix up the characters you enter. After every entry, the cipher gets a reshuffle; and after entering four characters, Keepkey autocompletes the word. This means that a malicious entity would get little useful information from the characters you type into the keyboard or what reflects on the screen. The process has the strength of 111 bits of entropy according to Keepkey’s site.
Passphrase
This is an additional word that you can append to your recovery sentence but is not stored on the device. With this optional feature, you can encrypt the private keys so that even if a malicious entity circumvents read protection, the keys will remain secure. However, the official site cautions users to implement this feature only if they fully understand its implications. It is not possible to recover the wallet without this word.
TREVOR Source Code
Keepkey used TREVOR hardware wallet source code, which has a strong reputation for security. It uses multiple protocols to achieve this. Keepkey has further improved on this to enhance its security.
Physical Button
In addition to the above features, Keepkey wallet has a button for confirming transactions. To verify any transaction, you need to long-press this button. Essentially, the button functions as a 2FA protecting users from erroneous payments. It also ensures that if someone is able to access your private keys or recovery phrase, they cannot transact without the physical device.
The team behind Keepkey has gone to great lengths to offer safety to its users. However, the one glaring loophole in all of this is the fact that the device is not regulated and is therefore not safe. For a crypto wallet to offer seamless security, it needs to adhere to regulatory requirements, which could be stringent but necessary in this nascent industry. eToro is one of the few wallets that have taken this into consideration. It is regulated in multiple countries such as the UK (FCA) and Cyprus (Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission). Only such regulated platforms can be said to be truly secure.
Wallet Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Premium design
- Cold storage
- Multilevel security features
- Integration with ShapeShift for easy currency conversions
- Multi-currency support
Cons:
- Needs third-party software add-on
- Slightly less portable than other hardware wallets (TREZOR and Ledger) due to its large display
- Does not save setup progress
- More expensive than other hardware wallets
- Unregulated
- If you lose your password (PIN) and recovery phrase, you cannot access the wallet
- The wallet does not have transaction fee estimates
- Keepkey does not have local currency amounts and thus requires manual calculations when sending payments in cryptocurrency