The smell of fall in the air, this weekend I indulged in apple delicacies, watched the changing leaves, and oh yeah, traveled to make sure my Bitcoin custody is up to date\u2026 <\/p>\n
If you\u00a0follow me on X<\/a>, you know that I hold Bitcoin with Casa<\/a>, a multisig security provider, and that I use the service to manage a few different multisig vaults for various purposes.<\/p>\n This requires keeping a number of keys and wallets up to date, and since I don\u2019t keep any key materials at home, it requires some degree of routine and dedication.\u00a0<\/p>\n I\u2019ve self-custodied my Bitcoin since 2020, and I\u2019ve built up some good habits along the way. That said, something that always strikes me is just how much more nerve-wracking it is than trusted set-ups. <\/p>\n One thing that always gives me pause: the firmware update. <\/p>\n As I\u2019ve written before, I\u2019m not super technical. My specialty in Bitcoin is history, and while, sure that necessitates that I know about network theory and architecture, there is something about watching digital gears and a loading bar that just makes me super uncomfortable.<\/p>\n I say this all because it\u2019s a less-known issue with the Bitcoin hardware wallets most use to self-custody. These devices, termed \u201csigning devices\u201d by Coldcard creator NVK<\/a>, do just that, they manage your key material, and they sign on your behalf when making a transaction. <\/p>\n But, being live digital devices, they\u2019re not infallible. They require some upkeep. All you need to do is to scroll past a few updates<\/a> of people losing Bitcoin on firmware updates to know the drawbacks<\/p>\n It\u2019s a common problem, and the culprit is always a corrupt hardware device (and a lost back-up). Add that multisig vaults, which require a combination of keys to sign a transaction, aren\u2019t yet the norm, and the number of lost Bitcoin just seems to always be up and to the right.<\/p>\n The most common issue \u2013 the user doesn\u2019t update their firmware often, waits, and later borks their device, thereafter finding they\u2019ve also misplaced their seed phrase.\u00a0<\/p>\n Here’s\u00a0Andreas<\/a> explaining firmware updates\u00a0in more detail<\/a>, though he doesn’t actually update his firmware, he just manages his seed phrase.<\/p>\n Suffice to say, it’s an example of why the world of self-custody, however improved it is, still makes me uneasy. In my case, I updated my wallets without much of an issue. Only one of the wallets even needed a firmware update, and it was simple. (Taking all of a few minutes to prove my coins are safe).<\/p>\n That said, I had to make sure to check my other keys beforehand, and that I had a plurality of the multi-sig keys needed in a worst-case scenario, as well as my seed backups.<\/p>\n This is what makes Bitcoin custody such a high-octane process: you can never be too careful. When you\u2019re your own bank, there\u2019s always a chance that something might go wrong.<\/p>\n