“Don't Put All Your Eggs In One Basket”: How Cryptocurrency Users Choose and Secure Their Wallets

Cryptocurrency wallets come in various forms, each with unique usability and security features. Through interviews with 24 users, we explore reasons for selecting wallets in different contexts. Participants opt for smart contract wallets to simplify key management, leveraging social interactions. However, they prefer personal devices over individuals as guardians to avoid social cybersecurity concerns in managing guardian relationships. When engaging in high-stakes or complex transactions, they often choose browser-based wallets, leveraging third-party security extensions. For simpler transactions, they prefer the convenience of mobile wallets. Many participants avoid hardware wallets due to usability issues and security concerns with respect to key recovery service provided by manufacturer and phishing attacks. Social networks play a dual role: participants seek security advice from friends, but also express security concerns in soliciting this help. We offer novel insights into how and why users adopt specific wallets. We also discuss design recommendations for future wallet technologies based on our findings.