Your First Steps to Buying Bitcoin (2020)

If you've got some money you're looking to invest, then cryptocurrency – and Bitcoin in particular – is a popular option. However, investing in crypto is a little bit different to investing in traditional markets, with a different set-up process, too. There are tons of Bitcoin scams out there.

To make sure you're setting yourself up to trade Bitcoin safely and securely, we've put together some simple tips on getting started.

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Choosing a Bitcoin Wallet

Your first step will be setting up a Bitcoin wallet to store, send, and receive your Bitcoin. There are a few different types of wallets, and each one offers its own benefits. At the same time, here is the Ledger scam, so beware.

The most commonly used Bitcoin wallet is a mobile wallet, which allows you to easily store your currency on a mobile device.

While these wallets offer easy access and good security, there are some people who opt for a paper wallet, which gives you a piece of paper with your address and private key, or a hardware wallet, which stores your information on a small external device.

Setting Up Your Wallet

A lot of the process of setting up your wallet is done automatically, but there are certain parts you need to pay close attention to.

Just like with your bank account, you want to make sure all your information is secure, and to ensure this, you need to set up a seed, secure password, public key, and private key.

Your seed is a 12-word passphrase that will help you recover access to your wallet if you lose your main password, so make sure you take note of it. Likewise, you will have to make a secure password that other people can't guess, a public key, which is like your address, and a private key, which allows you to control your account.

It's vitally important you keep all of this information safe and secure so your wallet is protected at all times.

Pick an Exchange

There are lots of different exchanges you can use to trade Bitcoin, each with slightly different features and strengths and weaknesses.

You want to make sure the exchange you choose is responsive, offers good rates, and allows you to easily make use of basic features such as limits and stop-loss orders. Most exchanges will require you to fill out compliance forms in order to buy Bitcoin, so it's worth double-checking that transactions from your country are permitted.

It's quite a simple step, but if you want to get the most out of your Bitcoin purchases, then it's worth doing your research and finding the best exchange for your circumstances. Meanwhile, staying away from common cryptocurrency scams is critical.

Buy Your First Bitcoin

Once you've got your wallet set up, then you're free to start purchasing Bitcoin. It's important you don't rush into things, though, and that you take the time to properly understand how everything works.

Use only legitimate platforms, like Binance or Coinbase, and make sure you've got a strong plan to make cryptocurrency work for you.

Bitcoin can be a very volatile currency, so it pays to do your learning before you start investing.

One example of a fraud crypto website is the Bitcoin Prime scam.

How To Report a Bitcoin Scammer

Let your family and online friends know about this article here on social media. You can also officially report crypto scammers and any other suspicious activity to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) using the link below:

Report To The FTC Here

How To Protect Yourself More

If you want to be the first to find out the most prevalent scams every week (not necessarily Bitcoin-related), feel free to subscribe here to the Scam Detector newsletter. You will get weekly emails – we promise not to spam messages.

On the same token, educate yourself with some other crypto fraud-related articles below, so that you know how to stay safe online. Last but not least, use the Comments section below to expose other Bitcoin scammers.

Common Cryptocurrency Scams

How To Protect Your Bitcoin

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