Setting up a crypto wallet without risk of screenshot leaks

Many South Africans set up crypto wallets these days. Many are also losing them to the laziest mistake in the book: taking a screenshot of the recovery phrase. That one photo syncs to iCloud, Google Photos, or WhatsApp backups, and suddenly the “safe place” you thought you had is basically a gift basket for scammers.

Never screenshot your seed phrase. Not once. Not “just for a minute”.

Why screenshots are a thief’s best friend

Most hacks don’t involve some hoodie-wearing genius with six monitors. They happen because people trust their camera roll more than their own handwriting.

Cloud services happily back up everything, including that secret phrase you thought was private. Malware developers know this. They build spyware to scan photos for the tell-tale twelve or twenty-four words, then drain the wallet faster than you can say “nsfas payout”.

According to security researchers, image-scraping malware like SparkCat and SparkKitty has already been spotted targeting phone galleries.

The scary part is how ordinary it feels. You install a wallpaper app, it gets permission to your photos, and in the background it uploads your screenshots. Meanwhile, you’re at Pick n Pay wondering why your balance is empty. Once someone has your seed phrase, they don’t need to “hack” you. They simply restore the wallet and spend your coins.

Setting up a wallet without leaving a digital trail

First, switch off photo backups before you start. On iPhone, that means turning off iCloud Photos. On Android or iPhone with Google Photos, double-check that the “Screenshots” folder is not being backed up.

Then, when the wallet generates your recovery phrase, resist the urge to photograph it. Write it down with a pen, on paper, or engrave it onto a metal plate if you’re extra cautious. Trezor and Ledger both warn users to never store seeds digitally, and there’s a reason for that.

Some wallets try to help by blocking screenshots during setup. That’s useful, but not foolproof. If your phone is already compromised, or if a friend decides to take a quick snap over your shoulder, the feature won’t save you.

A safer route for larger amounts is to use a hardware wallet, which keeps the phrase off your phone entirely, or an MPC (multi-party computation) wallet like ZenGo, which avoids seed phrases altogether.

If you already screenshot a seed, assume the wallet is compromised. Move the funds into a new one, generated offline, then delete the photo everywhere, not just your camera roll. Clear Recently Deleted, check iCloud, Google Photos, and even apps like WhatsApp that sync media automatically. Screenshots travel further than you realise.

Extra protection South Africans can add

If you want extra security, you can add a BIP-39 passphrase (sometimes called a 25th word). It’s like putting a safe inside your safe. Just know that if you lose the passphrase, no one can recover the wallet, not even you.

The FSCA has classified crypto as a financial product, which means local providers need to be licensed. If you’re staking or buying through a South African exchange, check their licence status. For self-custody, though, the rules are simple: no screenshots, no shortcuts, and no excuses.

In South Africa, people already know not to leave bank cards lying around. Treat your seed phrase with the same respect. One careless screenshot can cost you more than a night out in Cape Town — and the thieves don’t even need to leave home.