6 settings to lock your crypto and bank apps today
You can't stop hackers breaking into an exchange, but you can make your own account safer, with an authenticator app, an anti-phishing code, a withdrawal whitelist and the Bank of Thailand's app rules.
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The Binance hack, the biggest in history, has many people asking whether their own money is safe. You can't stop hackers breaking into an exchange, but you can make your own account much harder to get into, and most of it doesn't take long.
Each setting works like a separate key: even if thieves get your password, they still have more locks to get through. This guide gathers what Binance, Binance TH and the Bank of Thailand themselves advise, three settings for crypto apps and three for bank apps.
Three locks for crypto apps
- Use an authenticator app or passkey instead of SMS: Binance recommends a passkey or an authenticator app instead of SMS codes, because SMS is open to SIM swapping, where a thief gets a new SIM card for your number, as Binance Academy explains.
- Set an anti-phishing code: this is a word you choose, which the exchange then puts in every genuine email. If an email claims to be from the exchange but lacks your word, treat it as fake. On Binance TH it can be 4 to 20 characters with no special characters.
- Turn on the withdrawal whitelist: once it is on, coins can only be withdrawn to wallet addresses you have put on the list. Adding or changing addresses may pause withdrawals for 24, 48 or 72 hours, according to Binance's help page.
Three bank app rules from the Bank of Thailand
- Get apps only from official stores: the Bank of Thailand advises against downloading programs from sources the platform developer does not control and certify, such as anything outside the App Store and Google Play, and against installing apps from links people send you.
- Keep your phone and bank apps updated: the Bank of Thailand advises keeping the operating system and banking apps on their latest versions.
- Don't tap links in texts, emails or LINE messages that claim to be from a bank: the Bank of Thailand has had banks stop attaching links of any kind to SMS and email, so such a message is suspicious from the start.
No one should ask for your OTP
Binance TH has said it will never ask for personal information, passwords or OTP codes by SMS, email or phone. The same rule works for every app: if someone calls asking for an OTP, hang up and call back on an official number you already know.
If something already went wrong
The Bank of Thailand advises calling your bank's 24-hour hotline right away to ask it to hold the transaction, then reporting the case online on the Thai Police Online website as fast as possible, within 72 hours, or to the AOC 1441 online crime centre.
Check your phone in three questions
Pick up your phone and ask yourself:
- Is your crypto account still using SMS to verify you?
- Have you set an anti-phishing code yet?
- Did every banking app on your phone come from an official store?
FAQ
What is an anti-phishing code?
It is a word you set in your crypto exchange account. The exchange puts it in every genuine email, so an email without it, or with the wrong one, may be fake.
Why shouldn't I use SMS to verify my account?
Because SMS is open to SIM swapping, where a thief gets a new SIM card for your number. Binance recommends a passkey or an authenticator app instead.
What should I do if I clicked a link or sent money to a scammer?
Call your bank's 24-hour hotline right away, then report it online within 72 hours or to the AOC 1441 centre.
Sources
- Binance: Account security tips
- Binance Academy: What is two-factor authentication (2FA)?
- Binance TH: What is an anti-phishing code and how to set it up
- Binance: How to manage withdrawal settings
- Bank of Thailand: progress on measures against financial fraud
- Bank of Thailand: how its measures against financial fraud have developed
- Binance TH: warning about fake messages
