Bitcoin security firm Casa unveils a new security layer for users

Crypto security firm Casa is now enabling users to secure their bitcoin using a popular hardware device called a YubiKey, the company announced on-stage at the Bitcoin 2024 conference.

YubiKeys, developed by Yubico company in 2007, are among the most trusted ways to secure corporate accounts. Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft and many others have issued YubiKeys to their employees.

YubiKeys are small, physical systems known as security keys that allow people to do away with faultier security measures like passwords, which are easy to forget and brute force.

Crypto exchanges, including Kraken, have offered the option to log in with Yubikeys, and Coinbase even requires Prime users to get one if using its Prime services. Both companies explain the Yubico protocol is significantly more secure than other authenticator apps like Octa or Google Authentication.

Yubico said it has sold more than 28 million YubiKeys. A single Yubikey can be used to create a secure login to multiple different sites, but the security key will always remain in a user’s custody.

“When you use a YubiKey to secure your Casa vault, a seed phrase is generated on your laptop or computer and then stored securely on the YubiKey protected by the passkey you just created. That seed phrase is then only accessible when you successfully authenticate with the Casa domain using the YubiKey itself,” Casa wrote in a press release. 

This means you can’t be tricked into signing a transaction through a fake Casa website — "the passkey will refuse to decrypt the seed phrase,” the firm added.