# Secure your wallet

> Six habits that keep your crypto safe: back up your mnemonic phrase offline, lock the app, never share your keys, and check what you install and approve.

URL: https://docs.fxwallet.com/security-and-scams/how-to-secure-your-wallet
Last reviewed: 25 September 2026

In a self-custody wallet, only you can protect your crypto: FxWallet can't recover a lost mnemonic phrase or reverse a transaction. These habits cover the ways people most often lose crypto.

## 1. Back up your mnemonic phrase offline

Your mnemonic phrase is the master key to your wallet. If you lose it, you lose the wallet, and anyone who sees it can take everything in it.

- Write it on paper, or keep it on a metal backup plate, and store it somewhere safe from fire and water.
- Check that the words are in the right order and easy to read.
- Never keep it as a screenshot, a photo or a note, and never send it in a message.

See [Back up your mnemonic phrase](https://docs.fxwallet.com/get-started/back-up-your-mnemonic).

## 2. Lock FxWallet

Go to **Me** → **Security**, turn on **Biometrics**, then turn on **Require biometrics to unlock APP**. FxWallet then asks for your Face ID or fingerprint each time it starts. It doesn't ask again when you switch back to it while it's still running, so close FxWallet when you're done.

Without **Require biometrics to unlock APP**, anyone who can unlock your phone can open FxWallet and see your wallets. If you use a passcode instead of biometrics, FxWallet can't ask for it when it starts, so give your phone a strong screen lock. Choose a passcode that's hard to guess: not 123456, and not your birthday. See [Turn on biometrics](https://docs.fxwallet.com/settings/security#turn-on-biometrics).

## 3. Never share your mnemonic phrase or private key

FxWallet will never ask for them, and no real support agent ever will. Anyone who asks for either one is trying to steal your crypto. See [Fake support and QR code scams](https://docs.fxwallet.com/security-and-scams/fake-support-and-qr-code-scams).

## 4. Install FxWallet only from official sources

Download it from the official website or the official app stores, and check the developer's name before you install it. Fake apps copy FxWallet's name and icon. See [Download FxWallet and check it's genuine](https://docs.fxwallet.com/get-started/download-and-verify).

## 5. Check what you connect and approve

- Connect only to DApps you trust, and check the website's address before you connect.
- Read what you approve. An unlimited token approval lets a contract spend all of that token in your wallet.
- Revoke approvals you no longer need: on the **Wallet** tab, tap **More** → **Approvals**.
- Try new DApps and airdrops with a separate wallet that has its own mnemonic phrase, and keep most of your crypto in a wallet that you don't connect to them. Accounts you add with **Add Account** share their wallet's phrase, so they don't keep your crypto apart.

See [Token approvals](https://docs.fxwallet.com/wallet/token-approvals).

## 6. Keep FxWallet up to date

Updates include security fixes, so install them when FxWallet asks. See [Keep the app up to date](https://docs.fxwallet.com/get-started/download-and-verify#keep-the-app-up-to-date).