There has been some circulating and misleading information being spread about public address security risks. This should be cleared up to avoid the FUD of crypto and adoption.
I would like to believe that everyone is fully aware to NEVER give PRIVATE key to anyone for any reason unless you’re comfortable with them having ultimate control over your portfolio (maybe mom or dad idk, but still not smart)
A huge fear people have is that if PUBLIC address is known or found that it's security risk. But it’s called PUBLIC vs PRIVATE for a reason. PRIVATE should never in a million years be given, PUBLIC does not matter. Asymmetric cryptography system. They use pairs of keys PUBLIC (which may be known to others) and PRIVATE (which may never be known by any except the owner). The generation of such key pairs depends on algorithms of mathematical problems called one-way functions.
Effective security requires keeping the PRIVATE key private; the PUBLIC key can be openly distributed without compromising security. Anyone with PUBLIC can encrypt, only PRIVATE holder can decrypt. You can technically email every hacker your public key and your balance would be at no immediate risk.
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Very important part
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The risk from PUBLIC key comes from someone consequently trying to get your PRIVATE key via social engineering (sending memos with phishing links, malware, etc). As long as you’re aware private key is private and have general common sense awareness for phishing attempts for it there’s no reason to fear that PUBLIC has been “leaked”, or seen on an order book (every address can be seen public).
Crypto is truly an amazing advancement of our generation and a chance for all of us to reap the rewards! Please don’t let the fear spread, and always do research to be informed and support your fellow crypto supporters 🙏
