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CH01::Backups: s/mnemonic/recovery code/, add detail and warnings
- Use "recovery code" instead of "mnemonic phrase" or "seed phrase". A new tipbox describes that mnemonic implies memorization but that's bad practice. The phrase recovery code is generic enough to apply to a variety of schemes, including Electrum seed words, BIP38 seed words, aezeed, and non-phrase schemes like that used in Muun. - Be clearer about the difference between "wallet" and "wallet software". - Mention that restoring from a code doesn't restore labels or offchain transaction info. - Warn about re-entering your code into malware / phishing attacks.
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@ -319,36 +319,87 @@ the option to create a new Bitcoin wallet. Because the wallet she has
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chosen is a non-custodial wallet, Alice (and only Alice) will be in
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control of her keys. Therefore, she bears responsibility for backing
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them up, since losing the keys means she loses access to the bitcoin. To
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facilitate this, her wallet produces a _mnemonic phrase_ (explained more
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in <<mnemonic_phrase_intro>>), in the form of 12 English words that can
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be used to restore her wallet on any of the hundreds of compatible
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software or hardware wallets.
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facilitate this, her wallet produces a _recovery code_ (explained more in
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<<recovery_code_intro>>) that can be used
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to restore her wallet.
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Let's elaborate a bit on the mnemonic phrase, next.
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Let's elaborate a bit on the recovery code, next.
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[[mnemonic_phrase_intro]]
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==== Mnemonic Phrase
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[[recovery_code_intro]]
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==== Recovery Code
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Most modern non-custodial Bitcoin wallets will provide a _mnemonic
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phrase_ (also sometimes called a "seed" or "seed phrase") for their user
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to back up. The mnemonic phrase usually consists of 12 English words,
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selected randomly by the software, and used as the basis for the keys
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that are generated by the wallet. A sample mnemonic phrase is shown in
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<<mnemonic_phrase_sample>>.
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Most modern non-custodial Bitcoin wallets will provide a _recovery
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code_ for their user
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to back up. The recovery code usually consists of numbers, letters, or words
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selected randomly by the software, and is used as the basis for the keys
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that are generated by the wallet. Sample recovery codes from different wallets are shown in
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<<recovery_code_sample>>.
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[[mnemonic_phrase_sample]]
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.Alice is shown a 12-word mnemonic phrase that she must backup (offline on paper)
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image::images/mnemonic_phrase_sample.png[".Alice is shown a 12-word mnemonic phrase that she must backup (offline on paper)"]
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[[recovery_code_sample]]
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[cols="1,1"]
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|===
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| Wallet | Recovery code
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This mnemonic phrase can be used by Alice to restore *all* the
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transactions and funds in her wallet in the case of an event such as a
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lost mobile device, a software bug, or memory corruption. The mnemonic
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phrase is based on a common standard and therefore can be restored on
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any compatible software or hardware wallet. This allows Alice to try
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different wallets and also removes any dependency on the software or
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hardware maker of the wallet.
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| BlueWallet
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| (1) media (2) suspect (3) effort (4) dish (5) album (6) shaft (7) price (8) junk (9) pizza (10) situate (11) oyster (12) rib
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Of note, when receiving funds to a new mobile wallet for the first time, many wallets will often re-verify that you have securely backed-up your mnemonic phrase. This can range from a simple prompt to requiring the user to manually re-enter the phrase.
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| Electrum
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| nephew dog crane clever quantum crazy purse traffic repeat fruit old clutch
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| Muun
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| LAFV TZUN V27E NU4D WPF4 BRJ4 ELLP BNFL
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|===
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[TIP]
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====
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A recovery code phrase is sometimes called a "mnemonic" or "mnemonic phrase",
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which implies you should memorize the phrase, but writing the phrase
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down on paper takes less work and tends to be more reliable than most
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people's memories. Another alternative name is "seed phrase" because
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it provides the input ("seed") to the function which generates all of
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a wallet's keys.
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====
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If something happens to Alice's wallet, she can download a new copy of
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her wallet software and enter this recovery code to rebuild the wallet
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database of all the onchain transactions she's ever sent or received.
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However, recovering from the recovery code will not by itself restore any additional
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data Alice entered into her wallet, such as the names she associated
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with particular addresses or transactions. Although losing access to
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that metadata isn't as important as losing access to money, it can
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still be important in its own way. Imagine you need to review an old
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bank or credit card statement and the name of every entity you paid (or
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who paid you) has been blanked out. To prevent losing metadata, many
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wallets provide an additional backup feature beyond recovery codes.
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For some wallets, that additional backup feature is even more important
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today than it used to be. Many Bitcoin payments are now made using
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_offchain_ technology, where not every payment is stored in the public block
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chain. This reduces users costs and improves privacy, among other
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benefits, but it means that a mechanism like recovery codes that depends on
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onchain data can't guarantee recovery of all of a user's bitcoins. For
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applications with offchain support, it's important to make frequent
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backups of the wallet database.
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Of note, when receiving funds to a new mobile wallet for the first time,
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many wallets will often re-verify that you have securely backed-up your
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recovery code. This can range from a simple prompt to requiring the
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user to manually re-enter the code.
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[WARNING]
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====
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Although many legitimate wallets will prompt their user to re-enter
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your recovery code, there are also many malware applications that mimic the
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design of a wallet, insist you enter your recovery code, and then
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relay any entered phrases to the malware developer so they can steal
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your funds. This is the equivilent of phishing websites that try to
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trick you into giving them your bank passphrase. For most wallet
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applications, the only times they will ask for your recovery code are during
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the initial set up (before you have received any bitcoins) and during
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recovery (after you lost access to your original wallet). If the application
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asks for your recovery code any other time, consult with an expert to
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ensure you aren't being phished.
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====
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==== Running the wallet application
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