One of the most relevant digital issues in recent years is digital assets and all their by-products, and with the growing opening of metaverses by various companies such as Meta (formerly Facebook), many people are interested in knowing how this type of system works.
It goes without saying that if you are part of the group of Internet users who want to enter the metaverse, buy NFTs (non-fungible tokens), or exchange cryptocurrencies, it is essential to have a wallet that is easy to create and use.
A good option is MetaMask, a service that is currently enjoying some popularity. It is free to use and is available as a desktop browser extension and a mobile app.
Anyone can sign up to create a wallet to store their digital assets in just a few seconds, and it will also allow you to connect to the OpenSea NFT marketplace easily.
To get an idea of how easy crypto is to open, think of it as a single sign-on feature, like signing in with Google, Apple, or Facebook.
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Points to consider
There are a few things you need to keep in mind. Unlike the traditional username and password combination to log into an account, MetaMask relies on a twelve-word secret recovery phrase. That is why it is important to remember this phrase or keep it in a safe place.
MetaMask is a non-custodial wallet, so it does not store your wallet’s private keys. This means that if you forget your secret recovery phrase, you will likely lose access to your account and therefore your money.
How to open a wallet in MetaMask?
First of all, you need to go to the MetaMask website and choose the extension for your browser. Currently, the service is compatible with Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Brave.
Once you’ve downloaded the extension, click Get Started.
Since you don’t have an account yet, you need to click Create a wallet.
Now, MetaMask will ask you to enter a password. This is just to protect the client installed in the browser.
You will then be prompted for a 12-word secret recovery phrase and allowed to save it elsewhere.
Remember that you will have to rearrange your phrase in the exact order on the next screen, to make sure that the user saved their password in a safe place.
Voila, you now have a new MetaMask account and a default Etherum wallet address.
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It is in this place that you can now store Ethereum-based blockchain cryptocurrencies (such as Ether, also known as ETH), as well as NFTs of digital artwork and other assets.
Similarly, if you have assets stored in other wallets, you can transfer those tokens to this new address.
You can also download the MetaMask Android or iOS app. As with the desktop version, you can recover your wallet in these apps using your passphrase.
In particular, you can have a different password for your mobile app, but your wallet address and passphrase will remain the same.
To make sure you don’t forget this phrase, you should store it in a password manager like 1Password or LastPass.
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Is MetaMask secure?
There are many discussions about the downsides of MetaMask, such as limited support for various tokens and security risks.
However, if you are just starting on your web3 exploration journey, it is one of the easiest wallets to set up and connect to different services.