Private Keys vs Seed Phrases- What They Are and Why They Matter

[Sticky Bomb]

For the record.

A seed phrase is used to recover and reconstruct the whole wallet and it's corresponding private keys and wallet addresses.

A private key is tied to a particular wallet address and not the whole wallet.

Every wallet address has it's unique private key and if the private key to a wallet address gets compromised, you lose the funds in that address only and not the funds in the entire wallet.

[khaled0111]

Every wallet address has it's unique private key and if the private key to a wallet address gets compromised, you lose the funds in that address only and not the funds in the entire wallet.

That’s a good point, but it would be more helpful if you could explain why when one of your HD wallet’s private keys gets compromised, it doesn’t mean that all your funds are at risk.
This is why it’s always recommended to use HD wallets (with seeds) instead of relying on a single address (with just one private key). If a private key gets compromised, the rest of your funds are still safe, unlike the case where all your coins are stored in a single address.
(don’t put all your eggs in one basket).

[Makus]

The bitcoiners must have plan B. You must not have only 1 backup. You must have at least 2 backups to avoid an unexpected incident. I am stamping mnemonic seed on steel plat, and also write them on another plat and keep it on another place (safe box). So if that main plat broken or something, I have the back up to access my btc.

I also keep the private key on flash disk where I never use it online on my PC.

Absolutely, one backup is not enough to be called safe irrespective of the location you kept it. I wouldn't advise anyone to make just one backup plan to safe guard their mnemonic seed especially when theyr have coins inside. Or the worse thing that can happen is backing up your seed phrase in your mobile device like your phone's or laptop. I believe  only beginners make this mistake and if you are a beginner who has done this before it's not too late to delete it and save it manually offline for good. Reason being that your device screen can be copied without your permission and that act alon is disastrous.