Skip to main content

Is It Safe to Share Your Wallet Address?

Yes. A wallet address is public information designed to receive crypto. Sharing the correct address does not give someone control of your Gem Wallet or let them spend your funds.

However, public blockchains can reveal balances, transactions, tokens, and interactions associated with an address. Share an address only when needed and never confuse it with private wallet credentials.

danger

Never share your Secret Phrase or private key. Anyone who has either one can control the wallet. Gem Wallet support and legitimate senders do not need them to send you crypto.

What Is Safe to Share?​

You can share the following when receiving a payment or requesting support:

  • Your public wallet address for the correct blockchain.
  • The Receive screen's QR code.
  • A public transaction ID.
  • The asset name, blockchain network, and expected amount.
  • A required public memo, destination tag, or comment supplied for the transfer.

These details may reveal financial activity, but they do not provide signing authority over the wallet.

What Must Stay Private?​

Never share:

  • Your Secret Phrase or any of its words.
  • A private key.
  • Screenshots, photos, backups, or files containing secret wallet credentials.
  • Your device passcode, biometric access, or authentication codes.
  • A screen-sharing session that exposes your Secret Phrase or private key.

If any Secret Phrase words or a private key have been disclosed, follow What to Do If Your Secret Phrase Is Exposed.

Share the Correct Address from Gem Wallet​

Use the current Receive screen instead of copying an address from transaction history:

  1. Open Gem Wallet and select the wallet that should receive the funds.
  2. Select the asset, then select Receive.
  3. If a network selector is shown, choose the network the sender will use.
  4. Read the asset, network, and memo warning displayed on the Receive screen.
  5. Use Copy, the share button, or the displayed QR code to share the complete address.
  6. Ask the sender to compare the complete address and network before sending.

Gem Wallet creates the QR code from the complete public address shown on the Receive screen. Tapping the QR code or address also copies the complete address.

warning

The same token name can exist on multiple networks. A valid address is not proof that the sender selected the correct network. Confirm both the address and network before the transfer.

Check Whether a Memo or Tag Is Required​

Some networks or receiving services require a memo, destination tag, or comment in addition to an address. Gem Wallet displays a warning on the Receive screen when the selected network has a memo requirement.

When receiving into your own Gem Wallet address, follow the message shown in the app. When depositing to an exchange or another service, use the exact address, network, and memo or tag supplied by that service.

See What to Do If You Forgot a Memo or Destination Tag for an incorrect or missing memo.

Understand the Privacy Tradeoff​

Someone who knows your public address may be able to use a blockchain explorer to view:

  • Current and historical balances.
  • Incoming and outgoing transactions.
  • Token and NFT holdings.
  • Smart-contract and dApp interactions.
  • Other addresses that transact with it.

An address normally does not display your real-world name by itself. Your identity can still be linked to it if you publish the address, reuse it publicly, or associate it with an exchange account, social profile, invoice, or donation page.

For better privacy, avoid posting an address publicly unless necessary and keep personal and public-facing activity separate where practical. Do not assume that creating another address erases links already visible on-chain.

Watch for Scams After Sharing an Address​

Anyone can send unsolicited tokens or transactions to a public address. This does not mean they control your wallet.

  • Do not interact with unexpected tokens, links, or instructions embedded in token names.
  • Do not copy a future recipient from an unfamiliar transaction in your history.
  • Ignore people who claim they need your Secret Phrase to verify or release a payment.
  • Verify incoming transactions on the correct blockchain explorer.

Learn how look-alike entries target transaction history in What Is an Address-Poisoning Scam?.

Before Sharing an Address​

  • Select the intended wallet and asset.
  • Confirm the blockchain network with the sender.
  • Copy or share from the current Gem Wallet Receive screen.
  • Check whether a memo, tag, or comment is required.
  • Compare the complete address instead of only its first and last characters.
  • Share only the public information needed for the transaction.
  • Never share your Secret Phrase or private key.