Crypto Basics

New to crypto? You’re in the right place. This section explains the handful of ideas you actually need before holding your own coins — in plain language, no prior knowledge assumed. Each page ends by showing how the concept works on a KeepKey, so you’re never learning theory in a vacuum.

If you’ve already set up your device, you can skip straight to the Introduction and the Desktop Application.

Read these in order

1. What Is a Crypto Wallet? — Why a wallet holds keys, not coins, and what “self-custody” really means.
2. Keys & Addresses — Public keys you share, private keys you never do, and how receiving works.
3. Your Recovery Phrase — The 12 or 24 words that are your wallet, and how to back them up.
4. Transactions & Fees — How money moves on a blockchain, why it’s irreversible, and what network fees pay for.
5. Networks, Coins & Tokens — Bitcoin vs Ethereum, native coins vs tokens, and what “supported” means.
6. PIN & Passphrase — The two distinct locks on a hardware wallet and when to use each.
7. Staying Safe — The scams that target crypto users and the simple habits that defeat them.

And keep the Glossary open in a tab — every term links back to the page that explains it.

The one-sentence version

A KeepKey is a small device that generates and stores the secret keys to your crypto, keeps them offline, and makes you physically approve every transaction on its own screen — so nobody can move your funds without the device in hand. Everything below explains why that matters.

Already holding crypto on an exchange? That’s a custodial account — the exchange holds your keys, not you. What Is a Crypto Wallet? explains the difference and why moving to self-custody is the whole point of a KeepKey.