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Head to MetaMask Learn for a straightforward learning experience designed specifically for newcomers to web3. It's completely free, available in multiple languages, and includes useful tools such as simulations to help you find your feet with MetaMask.
Your Secret Recovery Phrase (SRP) is a unique 12-word phrase that is generated when you first set up MetaMask. Your funds are connected to that phrase. If you ever lose your password, your SRP allows you to recover your wallet and your funds. Write it down on paper and hide it somewhere, put it in a safety deposit box, or use a secure password manager. Some users even engrave their phrases into metal plates! (Storing your SRP in a physical, offline format eliminates the risk of hacking.)
Self-Custody
With MetaMask, control over your wallet belongs to the holder of a master key (that's YOU!).
Not even the team at MetaMask can help you recover your wallet and its accounts if you lose your Secret Recovery Phrase. As long as you keep this phrase safe and sound, no one can sign unauthorized transactions from your wallet's account(s).
There are a lot of benefits to using a self-custody wallet. For example:
- No institution can manipulate your access to your funds. Ever heard the phrase "not your keys, not your crypto"? Well, this is what it refers to. If you use a custodial wallet (where an organization or third party essentially controls the wallet, and acts according to your instructions), there's very little other than trust preventing the custodian from making off with your funds.
- No merchant you transact with via MetaMask can access more of your personal data than you reveal.
- Your MetaMask wallet can be used almost like a passport, enabling digital proof of identity. The Ethereum Name Service (ENS) is perhaps the most prominent example that self-custodial wallet ownership is increasingly following this route.
The trade-off? Because a MetaMask wallet is self-managed, the responsibility for keeping that wallet safe is entirely yours.
Never ever share your Secret Recovery Phrase with anyone. Sharing your SRP with someone would be like handing over the PIN code to your bank card, or the keys to your house. It would give that person the ability to access and transfer all of your funds. The MetaMask team will never ask you for it. If anyone or any website asks you to share it, they 're trying to scam you.
If you're more of a visual learner, this quick video should help.
Security tips
Here are a few basic security tips to help you keep your wallet secure:
What's the difference between a Secret Recovery Phrase and a password? Why do I need both?
MetaMask locally encrypts your secret recovery phrase with your password. That means that when you lock your wallet, no one can use your funds until you enter your password again. If you forget your password, you can regain access to your account with the SRP, as it's the key to access your wallet that only you hold. It's important to know that neither MetaMask or anyone else can change or recover your seed phrase if it's lost. Please guard it well! For more information on this, see here.
How to reveal (and recover) your Secret Recovery Phrase
you'll be prompted to set your SRP and password when you first install MetaMask. If you lose it, you should be able to recover it if you remember your password and you have a copy of your vault data (files automatically created on the device you use to access MetaMask — so you need the device and your password). However, there are only certain circ*mstances where this is possible. See our guide here to establish whether this is an option for you.
warning
Warning!
If you lose your Secret Recovery Phrase and forget your password, there is no way to recover the phrase and access your account.
Don 't share your SRP and private keys
This has been mentioned already, but it doesn 't hurt to be thorough: anyone who has your SRP or private keys can remove tokens from your accounts. Never share your SRP or private keys with anyone — not even the MetaMask team, even though we will never ask you for this information. If anyone claims to be a MetaMask team member and asks you for this information, please report them immediately using our official support channels.
If you have a large number of tokens in your accounts, consider getting a hardware wallet.
Hardware wallets, like Trezor and Ledger, are commonly thought to be a safer way to store your tokens. They store the private keys offline, meaning you need to be in physical possession of the wallet to sign transactions — a considerable barrier to online scammers.
These are basic tips, but are by no means an exhaustive list of security options. Keep on top of token security trends and updates by learning from the Ethereum community, reading helpful material (like this post) and joining discussion channelslike this.
If you see members of the community struggling with security, feel free to share this post. Remember, if you need any help, or would like to report accounts that are imitating MetaMask, get in touch.
Got any more questions? Check out our FAQs, other articles on this page, or get in touch with MetaMask Support through the'start a Conversation' button on our support homepage.
FAQs
Your Secret Recovery Phrase (SRP) is a unique 12-word phrase that is generated when you first set up MetaMask. Your funds are connected to that phrase. If you ever lose your password, your SRP allows you to recover your wallet and your funds.
What is the secret recovery phrase in crypto wallet? ›
KEY TAKEAWAYS: — Your Secret Recovery Phrase (or seed phrase) is the backup of all the private keys stored in a given crypto wallet. It allows you to recover all of your blockchain addresses, even without the original crypto wallet.
What is the 12 word secret recovery phrase? ›
What is a secret recovery phrase? Your secret recovery phrase is the key to your wallet and controls access to all your crypto. A secret recovery phrase is a set of words that correspond to numbers. These numbers make up a seed integer that generates all of the private keys in your wallet.
What is an example of a recovery phrase? ›
The reason recovery phrase is a series of 12 to 24 simple words (like “army,” “energy,” “fabric,” “lucky,” “opera,” “stereo,” “trash,” or “void”) rather than a numeric password is because long strings of numbers are difficult for humans to remember or even transcribe correctly — think of how hard it can be to input a ...
How do I get my secret recovery phrase? ›
In Settings, choose 'security & Privacy'. In this menu, tap on 'Reveal Secret Recovery Phrase'. You'll be presented with a new screen, where you can click on the button that reads 'Get started', to answer the two questions.
How to generate a secret phrase? ›
The process of generating a seed phrase starts with generating random data, called entropy. The entropy is then run through a hashing function, specifically SHA256, to generate the checksum. Part of the checksum is then added to the random data.
How do I find my crypto recovery phrase? ›
Where can I view my recovery phrase again?
- Go to Settings and tap Recovery Phrase under the Security section.
- Tap View Recovery Phrase in the pop-up window.
- Enter your passcode to view your recovery phrase and note it down if you need to.
- Tap Done to return to the Settings screen.
If you forgot to write down your backup phrase you can always access it within the wallet. You just need to enter the wallet with your password. Then go to the Settings tab and find Private Keys. View your phrase and save it in a safe place.
How can I recover my blockchain wallet without recovery phrase? ›
How to recover a crypto wallet without a seed phrase
- Contact wallet software support: Reach out to your wallet provider's customer support. ...
- Check for backups: Look through your cloud storage, external hard drives and any physical notes for copies of your wallet information.
It works as a master key that grants control over your digital assets. The seed phrase consists of 12 to 24 simple words, randomly sequenced from a list of 2048 words. Here is an example of what a 12-word seed phrase can look like: carpet, cat, flower, chair, foot, river, make, image, amazing, three, say, shoe.
With this number of words, there are 2,048 to the power of 12 (more than a decillion) possible seed phrase combinations, which is such a large number that the odds of someone guessing your phrase are almost zero.
What are 5 examples of recover? ›
How to Use recover in a Sentence
- He suffered a stroke and hasn't yet recovered the use of his left arm.
- She had a heart attack but is recovering well.
- The police recovered his stolen wallet.
- Share prices will be down until the economy recovers.
- The program helps users recover computer files that have been deleted.
5 top ways to securely store your recovery phrase
- Store it offline. If you keep your recovery phrase on any device that connects to the internet, there is a high chance that hackers can gain access to it. ...
- Splitting your seed phrase. ...
- Using a hard drive. ...
- Solid steel backup. ...
- Stonebook notebook.
Your recovery phrase is the 24 words you wrote down when you created your wallet. If you lost your phrase, you can restore it using any TON Wallet. In Tonkeeper: Settings > Wallet protection > Your private key. Be sure to write down these 24 words and keep them in a safe place.
What happens if someone finds your recovery phrase? ›
Remember, your crypto recovery phrase IS your wallet. Anyone who has it can access your wallet and transfer your funds.
Where can I find my trust wallet secret phrase? ›
Select Settings, located in the bottom row. Choose View Secret Phrase. Enter your password, then click on Reveal. Take note of your secret phrase.
How do I recover my crypto wallet without phrase? ›
Even without a seed phrase, there are other ways to recover funds from a lost or locked wallet. Alternatives to seed phrases include multisig wallets, hardware security modules (HSMs), social recovery systems and biometric authentication.
How do I recover my 12-word wallet recovery phrase? ›
If you forgot to write down your backup phrase you can always access it within the wallet. You just need to enter the wallet with your password. Then go to the Settings tab and find Private Keys. View your phrase and save it in a safe place.
What happens if someone gets my Ledger recovery phrase? ›
Anyone with access to your recovery phrase can steal your crypto funds without even having access to your Ledger device. Ledger does not store your private key and we will never ask you for your recovery phrase. You can learn more about your 24-word recovery phrase and how to keep it secure here.
What is your secret recovery word? ›
Your Secret Recovery Phrase (SRP) is a unique 12-word phrase that is generated when you first set up MetaMask. Your funds are connected to that phrase. If you ever lose your password, your SRP allows you to recover your wallet and your funds.
