What is a Recovery (Seed) Phrase?
Recovery (seed) phrase — short overview
Passphrase, recovery phrase, seed phrase or mnemonic phrase is a combination of words which is randomly generated by a crypto wallet. It is needed to recover your funds.
Basically it’s a readable form of a private key — the unique, secret passcode used to authenticate and encrypt your wallet access. Seed phrase is used to sign transactions and recover your wallet if the device is somehow lost or damaged. It was first introduced in Bitcoin.
What does a seed phrase look like?
A seed phrase is a series of 12–24 random simple algorithmically-generated words. This series may look like this:
pen, last, aggravating, hope, change, knife, soul, deep, colonel, attractive, meet, estimate.
How does a seed phrase work?
A crypto wallet software has a list of words taken from a dictionary. Each word from the list corresponds to a specific number. So, this phrase can be converted into a number that generates all the private keys used in the wallet. That is why it’s essential to remember not only the words, but also their order.
Why is your seed phrase important?
Your seed phrase is associated with your crypto wallet, i.e. all your funds. So if you accidentally delete your wallet or lose your device, you’ll be able to restore your digital assets. Otherwise, if you lose your seed phrase, your funds will be gone forever because a non-custodial wallet does not keep your seed phrase or any other personal data.
Private Key vs Seed Phrase
Your private key relates to just one blockchain address, but the recovery phrase refers to your entire wallet, even if it stores many private keys.
How to store your seed phrase safely?
There are several methods — choose what suits you best. Here are some pieces of advice:
General:
- Seed phrase is also called a mnemonic phrase, hinting that it’s better to memorize it. Use different mnemonic techniques to make it easier.
- Remember not to store your seed phrase online.
Safety:
- First rule: Don’t share it with anyone.
- Second rule: Don’t share it with anyone! (Fight Club reference). It is a common scam, when a scammer pretends to be a wallet representative, asking for your seed phrase. No wallet team member will ever ask you for it. It’s completely private information.
Storage:
- It can be memorized, written on a piece of paper or engraved on a piece of metal.
- If you decide to store it physically, choose a bank deposit box or a fire-proof safe.
- If you write it down, it’s better to choose a pen over a pencil, because it doesn’t fade over the years. Use archival paper and store it in a dry and dark place. Some people like to scribe it on a piece of metal as it’s harder to damage than paper.
Are there any other safe recovery methods?
Seed phrase recovery method is highly secure, but there is also another way to secure your wallet that is even more secure. It’s a hardware wallet. It’s a secure hardware device that stores your private key. MyNearWallet supports Ledger Nano X and S to connect your NEAR wallet. You can buy your first Ledger Nano on the official Ledger website.
Creating a Seed Phrase for MyNearWallet
MyNearWallet’s seed phrase is a 12-word phrase that may look like this:
It’s infeasible to crack this puzzle. If an attacker wants to get access to your digital assets by solving your passphrase, his or her computer will need to perform 2¹²⁸ operations. Nowadays, it’s technically impossible, as it would take billions of years.
NB!
We want to emphasize that MyNearWallet is a non-custodial wallet meaning that we don’t have access to any of your information. If your passphrase is lost, we can’t help you with the recovery of your funds. They will be lost forever. Your seed phrase is completely your responsibility. We, on our behalf, can provide you with the security tips which will help you to keep your passphrase safe and sound.
MyNearWallet to remove outdated recovery methods
As you might already know, MyNearWallet is going to remove outdated recovery methods such as SMS and email verification as they are not safe enough, and the wallet team aims to provide the highest security standards for its users.
Check out our article to learn more about the update. In it, our CPO describes the way your digital assets are stored, why SMS and email recovery methods are risky and what will be done to enhance security in MyNearWallet in the near future.
MyNearWallet Security Methods
When the outdated recovery methods are removed, there will be two main security methods available in MyNearWallet. And we won’t stop there. We’re currently working on implementing new innovative security features that will be both highly effective and easy-to-use.
Сurrently, we have two recovery options: Ledger hardware wallet if you already have one and the seed phrase option for new users.
The first is the most secure one, because, this way, your private key stays on a hardware device, but to use it you’ll need to have purchased it. And since not every user has a Ledger (especially a beginner), it makes it quite a complicated security method.
But is there a method that is easy-to-use but still highly secure? Yes, this is exactly what a seed phrase is.
Closing thoughts
Passphrase is a highly secure recovery method but it should be managed very carefully, otherwise your funds will be lost. Please, take it seriously and employ our security tips to make sure that your passphrase doesn’t get lost or exposed.
