If you buy or trade NFTs, Ethereum, or any other ERC-20 token, you must have heard of MetaMask. I am telling you everything about MetaMask: what is it? What digital assets can you store in it? How to set it on and use it?
MetaMask is a digital crypto wallet. It has been a household name in the crypto sphere since its inception in 2017. You’ll quickly identify it by the amazing orange fox logo. But then, what’s a digital wallet? Your crypto wallet is your personal key that enables you to interact with the cryptographic world. Without one, you'd not be able to buy, sell or transfer digital assets like NFTs or cryptocurrencies on the blockchain. Like when you buy stuff in the real world, you need a wallet filled with cash.
MetaMask is designed for Ethereum, the most diverse blockchain ever. Everything Ethereum is there, whether it's NFTs, DeFi, or ERC-20.
It is a free, open-source wallet that will get you rolling with Ethereum. It’s available as an app for Android and iOS. It can be used as an extension with web browsers, specifically Google Chrome, Firefox, Brave, and Edge.
MetaMask for Beginners: Easy Guide to Crypto
What are some specific uses of the MetaMask Wallet? While one of the main uses of a MetaMask wallet is buying ETH, you can also use it to receive, accept, send, and swap Ethereum and NFTs. Once you’ve setup your wallet, you can easily use the dashboard to buy ETH via different payment options like credit cards, bank transfers, etc. It allows you to connect to thousands of decentralized applications and Web 3 services.
A word of caution before proceeding! The internet is full of scam apps pretending to be legitimate MetaMask. I highly recommend that you visit the MetaMask website – it’s the only way you can avoid potential fake versions.
Create your account To start things, you’ll need to come up with a password or let the random generator create one for you. Most importantly, you’ll be shown a 12-word "seeded-phrase." These are the words that enable you to restore your wallet any time you forget your password or use a different gadget. Don’t forget to write them down.
How to Protect Your Crypto
Be very careful where you keep your 12-word seed phrase because anyone who gets access to it can quickly access your wallet and all its contents. A good practice would be to make multiple copies offline.
Once MetaMask opens, you'll be prompted to "Create a Wallet" or "Import a Wallet." If you're not a newbie, you can select "Import a wallet." Remember the 12-word seed phrase. Once again, I recommend that you write these words somewhere safe so that you don't forget or misplace them. Store them online is not a good idea because of the potential cybersecurity risks.
You can use your MetaMask wallet to receive and send ETH tokens or even house your NFTs. You can also transfer tokens from centralized exchanges like Coinbase, Binance etc to your wallet. If you’re entirely new, you could also use your wallet to do some practice with several test networks that run on copies of the Ethereum blockchain using testnet ETH.
