Phone Stolen? How to Keep Your Crypto and Bank Money Safe

It happens in a second: a window down in Lagos traffic, a crowded bus stop, a busy owambe. The phone is gone, and with it your banking apps, your crypto apps, your email and your WhatsApp.

The first hour matters most. Here's what to do, in order, and how to prepare so that next time a stolen phone is just a stolen phone.

In the first hour

1. Call your bank. Ask them to block your mobile banking, cards and USSD access. Most banks have a 24-hour line. If you use several banks or fintech apps, call each one.

2. Call your mobile network. Ask them to block your SIM. This stops anyone receiving your one-time codes and SMS alerts. You'll replace the SIM on the same number later, with your ID.

3. Secure your email. From another device, change your email password and sign out of all other sessions. Your email is the key that resets everything else.

4. Secure your crypto apps.

• KWIQ: contact support in the app or on kwiq.app from another device, or email admin@kwiq.app. Support is available 24/7. KWIQ's internal security checks mean a stolen phone alone isn't enough for someone to move your funds, moving money out needs your transaction PIN, and the email on your account can't be changed, so nobody can take your account over by switching it.
• Exchanges: use their official support to freeze or secure your account.
• Self-custody wallets (Trust Wallet and the like): if your seed phrase backup is safe, restore it on a trusted device and move everything to a new wallet with a new seed phrase.

5. Try to locate or erase the phone. Use Find My (iPhone) or Find My Device (Android) from another device to lock it or wipe it.

Within a day

• Replace your SIM on the same number at your network's service centre.
• Change passwords for your social media, especially WhatsApp (re-register it on the new SIM).
• Warn your contacts that anyone messaging from your accounts asking for money isn't you.
• Check your bank statements for anything unfamiliar.

How to prepare now, before anything happens

Lock everything.

• A strong screen lock (not 1234 or your birthday), with a short auto-lock time.
• PINs on your banking and crypto apps, different from your screen lock.

Keep secrets off the phone.

• Never store seed phrases or passwords in your photos, notes or chats. Our explainer on seed phrases covers safer options.
• Write down your bank's emergency number and your network's customer care number somewhere you can reach without your phone.

Protect your SIM. Many account takeovers in Nigeria come from SIM swaps. Read how to protect yourself from SIM swap fraud.

Know your support channels. Bookmark how to get help from KWIQ support so you're not searching for it in a panic.

Don't keep everything in one place. Big balances belong somewhere you understand well. Our guide to custodial vs non-custodial wallets explains the trade-offs.

If someone did get in

If you think someone accessed an account, our step-by-step guide on what to do if your crypto account is hacked covers the next moves, and how KWIQ support helps.

A new phone, a new SIM and a few calls later, you can be back up and running. Download the KWIQ app on your new phone and sign in, or use KWIQ on the web.