PIN as one of the security mechanism of imKey, has an important role, this article will introduce a little knowledge about PIN, so that you can understand imKey more deeply
What is a PIN
PIN, full name Personal Identification Number. In the early days, PIN was a security measure used by telecom operators to protect SIM cards, similar to the 6-digit password function of bank cards.
Introduction to imkey PIN
When getting the imKey hardware wallet for the first time, the user will be prompted to set a PIN. This PIN supports numbers from 0 to 9 and is 6 to 8 digits long.
In addition, to prevent the PIN from being guessed, a security strength check is performed when the user sets the PIN, for example, consecutive numbers ("123456", "345678"), the same number ("222222", "666666") are not valid as PIN's.
What are the security mechanisms of PIN?
In the imKey hardware wallet, you will find that you need to enter a PIN every time you turn on the device, so this PIN can be understood as the device's boot PIN, so that even if the imKey is lost, the perpetrator cannot use it, and the accumulative trial and error 6 times After that, the wallet (private key, seed, PIN) in imKey will be reset automatically, which ensures the security of the wallet to a great extent.
In addition, imKey also does a lot of security enhancement work
1.Illegal device access restrictions
When an unfamiliar mobile phone tries to access imKey, the PIN needs to be verified on the device, which makes it necessary for the attacker to obtain the device, otherwise he cannot do evil only by remote means.
2.Access time limit
The imKey has set a time lock for access. If there is no operation for 5 minutes, the imKey will be locked automatically, and the PIN must be re-authenticated when accessing again.
How difficult is PIN cracking?
Don't underestimate the fact that PIN is just a 6-8 digit number. In fact, it is quite difficult to guess correctly. Taking a 6-digit PIN as an example, there are 10*10*10*10*10*10=1000000 combinations of PINs. Assuming there are enough resources and the number of attempts, for a layman who does not have any professional knowledge, only has public information such as user manuals, and does not have any equipment, in order to guess the PIN value, it takes an average of 500,000 attempts, one per minute. Try to calculate, it will take about 500000/60≈8333 hours, about a year to guess the correct PIN value.
So, please keep your PINs safe and backed up to keep your assets secure.About how to better use hardware wallets to control digital assets, imKey is very happy to discuss and communicate with you. If you have any ideas, welcome to communicate with us
Official twitter: @imKeyOfficial
Official discord：https://discord.gg/xuxeyBBHTC
Official Email: support@imkey.im
