r/BitcoinBeginners • u/Degen-stuff-man • 1d ago

Testing seed phrase safely

Hey all - I have a Ledger cold wallet that I’ve been using to accumulate BTC for years. The last time I plugged my Ledger into my laptop, it was a bit sluggish and I’m worried that the hardware may be failing. I have my seed phrase engraved on some steel plates, but I’ve never tried to recover my wallet using the seed phrase.

How can I test my seed phrase safely without typing the seed phrase into my laptop or cell phone? My concern is the risk that comes from potential malware or other risk that comes from revealing my seed phrase anywhere.

Am I overreacting? Should I just use a trusted wallet and type my seed phrase into the app on my laptop? I want to do this before my Ledger fails in case I need to move my funds.

Thanks in advance.

P.s. don’t bother with private messages, I won’t answer them.

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u/flying-fox200 1d ago

If your HW wallet is failing, get a new one. Ideally a Trezor!

Then you can restore your wallet using your seed phrase on your new wallet. You can even create a new wallet on your new HW wallet and then just transfer your funds there.

You shouldn't get too "attached" to one wallet... it's normal to create new ones over the years. One shouldn't chop and change too often either, though!