Ledger’s 3 Integration Categories Explained

By Kirsty Moreland

Ledger integrations are the unsung hero of our entire system – but you may not realise their significance. Here, we explain each category, and why it is so essential.

Ledger’s reason for being is to bring the highest level of security to your crypto assets – but doing this effectively in the expanding world of Web3 means being more than just a simple wallet. Beyond this, it entails creating an ecosystem that is easy to use, can be constantly upgraded to include new functionalities and can also be used by developers.

To address all these needs, Ledger’s ecosystem contains more than just a hardware device: it also includes a user interface and an ecosystem of integrated dApps build on Ledger’s security foundations. These three elements work together to offer you not just security, but a whole ecosystem of options that can constantly update to include new coins, apps and features.

These new elements are brought within our system via our system “integrations”, and here we’ll be explaining different types of integration to you, so you understand how our system works – and why we’re so able to bring you Web3 securely, even as it evolves.

Three Elements, Three Integration Types 

There are a few levels of integration in the Ledger ecosystem which allow different parts of our system to be responsive to the development of Web3. These integrations allow us to update:

• The hardware device itself (which offers you a way to store your crypto funds in a secure offline space), 
• Ledger Live and the features it offers (a space for you to manage your cryptocurrency and NFTs seamlessly straight from your computer or smartphone), and the 
• dApp Catalogue (which offers a way for you to access dApps, decentralized platforms, and Web3 easily and with security).

To take advantage of the full opportunities of the Ledger ecosystem, it’s important to understand what each category is, how it works, and what it means for you. Let’s unpack those now.

1) Firmware – Integrations to your Hardware Device

Ledger’s hardware wallets use applications and firmware for managing your crypto. There are two elements to this. 

First, being able to constantly update your device software enables us to ensure your assets are completely secure. Ledger has a team of internal security experts who are constantly testing for vulnerabilities, bugs, and potential issues in our ecosystem – and then resolving them. These improvements can then be deployed via a firmware update, meaning these updates are a pretty crucial part of our security infrastructure.

But there’s also a second reason for firmware updates: they enable Ledger to integrate support for new coins and tokens for your device, allowing you to keep your private keys securely offline, no matter what blockchain you’re using. Assets like Cardano, for example, could not have been brought within Ledger Nano without an update to its firmware.

So in short, updates to your hardware device firmware enable Ledger to evolve in tandem with the Web3 ecosystem and its assets, and also ensure your device remains completely impermeable to digital threats.

2) App Integrations – Expanding the Ledger Live Experience

If your Ledger Nano is the hardware that keeps your private keys offline, Ledger Live is the convenient interface where that security meets ease of use. Beyond simply keeping your private keys offline, Ledger Live gives you a great user experience by:

• Letting you visualise your digital portfolio (such as your crypto holdings, your NFTs, and whatever digital tokens are in your wallet) AND
• Seamlessly manage your cryptocurrency via our interface on your smartphone or computer (with confirmation on your Nano, of course)

Ledger Live allows you to manage over 1800 coins and blockchain-based assets on the user interface. The Ledger Live App platform integrates with your Nano device, functioning as a secure gateway unlocking seamless access to the crypto ecosystem. When a given blockchain is integrated within Ledger Live, it allows you to go beyond simply securing your private keys on your device, allowing you to visualise those assets along with the rest of your portfolio on the interface, simply by connecting your Nano.

So Ledger Live integrations permit new blockchains and networks to be seamlessly visualised and managed on our application, bringing much-needed simplicity to Web3, and all of the new networks that emerge as it develops.

3) Apps Catalogue Integrations – Secure Gateway to Web3

Web3 is an expanding space packed with exciting opportunities – we know! BUT this new space is built on smart contracts, and as you know as an avid reader of Ledger Academy, those come with some risks. 

The key concern for you is blind signing, where you need to confirm transactions without being able to see the full details of the smart contract you’re interacting with. Without that essential transparency as you interact, you face a choice: either curb your exploration of Web3 (a whole world of smart contracts) which means you can’t benefit from the array of new services on offer; or continue to interact without any guarantee of what you’re signing each time you transact. Security or freedom…what a choice.

Ledger’s solution? Let’s have both. The Ledger Live Apps Catalogue is a selection of dApps that have been integrated within Ledger’s ecosystem. What does that mean for you, the user? It means every transaction with those dApps will now be transparent  – the full smart contract interaction details can be shown on the trusted display of your Ledger Nano.

This section is constantly expanding to include the newest and best dApps Web3 has to offer. For developers, our Apps Catalogue integrations mean they build their applications within the Ledger ecosystem, to bring their platforms to the largest audience possible in the most secure way. For you, it means Ledger’ is a secure gateway to Web3.

Ledger Integrations: Letting Ledger Grow with Web3

In the most basic sense, users of the Ledger Nano enjoy the security of offline keys. But beyond this, we offer a device that is constantly improving and upgrading to secure new assets, a smoothe management experience via Ledger Live, and the industry leading transparency of our Discover ecosystem, which makes Web3 a more secure place for our community. 

All of these hinge on our ability to adapt and evolve with the Web3 ecosystem, its options and challenges. This is why our three categories of integration – be it for the device, our management application or our App Cataloge – are such an important part of Ledger’s system, not only for users but also for developers.

If you’re looking for an ecosystem that is not only secure, but also dedicated to constantly improving, expanding and spearheading the exciting world of Web3, Ledger is the platform for you. And it’s all down to our humble integrations.

Knowledge is power.

Smart contracts revolutionised the way we use our value – and if you’re embracing Web3, understanding the basics is non-negotiable! Don’t worry – School of Block is here for you.