Backup & Recovery
This is the step-by-step guide to setting up Z-Text and never losing access: your recovery phrase, the optional encrypted backup file, your PINs, and how to restore. The model is deliberately small — read it once and you are set.
The 3 things to remember
Z-Text keeps the security model intentionally short. There are only three things to hold in your head:
| What | What it does |
|---|---|
| One PIN to open | Unlocks the app every time you open it |
| One panic PIN to wipe | A different code that erases everything instantly — for when you are forced to unlock |
| One recovery seed | The 24 words that restore your whole wallet — saved one of two ways: by hand, or as an encrypted file |
That's the whole model
Everything below is just the detail behind these three. One seed, two PINs — there is nothing else to memorize.
Step 1 — Create your wallet
On first launch, tap Get Started. Z-Text generates a brand-new wallet on your device — a 24-word recovery phrase (your "seed"). Those 24 words are your wallet: whoever holds them controls it, and they are the only way to recover it if your phone is lost.
Step 2 — Choose how to back up
Right after your wallet is created, Z-Text asks one question: how do you want to back it up? You pick one option — there is no second prompt nagging you afterward.
- Recovery phrase (24 words) — write them down by hand. The standard, fully-offline way.
- Encrypted backup file — save an encrypted file plus a passphrase, and restore from the file.
Both protect the same single seed. You are choosing how to store it, not creating two different wallets. You can always set up the other method later in Settings → Security.
Option A — Recovery phrase (24 words)
Z-Text shows your 24 words, each numbered 1–24 so you can copy the order exactly. Write them on paper in order and store them somewhere safe — not in a photo, an email, or a cloud note. To confirm you saved them, Z-Text asks you to re-enter a few of the words. That is it — your wallet is backed up.
The one rule
Never share your recovery phrase. No one from Z-Text will ever ask for it. Anyone with these 24 words can read your messages and spend your funds.
Option B — Encrypted backup file
Prefer a file you can keep on a USB stick or a cloud drive? Z-Text can export an encrypted .ztbk backup file. The file is sealed with its own separate passphrase that the app generates for you — write that passphrase down too (it is also 24 words). To restore, you provide both the file and its passphrase.
Two phrases, explained
This is the part that trips people up. There are two different 24-word phrases, and they are not the same thing:
- Your recovery phrase — the 24 words that are your wallet. This is the one that matters.
- The backup-file passphrase — a separate 24 words that only unlock the encrypted file. It is not a wallet key.
You only ever deal with the second one if you choose the encrypted-file option. Back up by hand and there is just the single phrase.
Step 3 — Your PINs
After backup, you set your PIN. Z-Text uses two of them:
Open PIN
A 6-digit code you enter to open the app and to authorize sending. It is stored only as a salted hash on your device, and repeated wrong guesses trigger a cooldown.
Panic PIN
A separate code that, instead of unlocking, instantly wipes everything on the device. It is for the situation where someone forces you to open the app — you enter the panic PIN and your data is gone.
The panic PIN really wipes
Entering it erases the wallet and messages on that device with no confirmation. Make sure your recovery phrase or backup file is safe first — that is how you get back in afterward.
Restoring your wallet
New phone, or recovering after a wipe? On the welcome screen tap "I have a recovery key" and pick how you backed up:
- From your recovery phrase — type the 24 words in order. Z-Text rebuilds the wallet and re-scans the chain for your history.
- From an encrypted file — load the
.ztbkfile and enter its passphrase.
Either way you land back in the same wallet, with your balance and message history restored from the blockchain.
Why your data stays safe
Everything Z-Text stores on your device is encrypted at rest — there is no plaintext copy of your messages or keys sitting on disk, even on a rooted or jailbroken phone. Combined with the open PIN, the panic PIN, and on-chain zk-SNARK shielding, a lost or seized phone does not hand over your data.
For the full security model — encryption layers, zk-SNARKs, and the threat model — see the Security page.