What is the recovery key, and where do I keep it?

What the recovery key does

Your recovery key is 12 English words. York Vault makes them at setup from a random 128-bit number. The words can do 3 things:

1. Open your library if you forget your code.
2. Let you set a new code, of any lock type.
3. Restore your backup on a new or erased phone.

York Vault has no email reset, no security question and no support code. The only other way back in is the slow reset through your Apple Account or Google account. It works only if you turn it on before you need it. That is why the key matters.

What you see at setup

1. The Your recovery key screen shows the 12 words in order. The screen says: “These 12 words open your library if you forget your code. We do not keep a copy, and York Vault cannot show them again.”
2. Write the words on paper, in order. York Vault also offers a printable PDF that you can save to Files and print.
3. Tap I wrote down the words.
4. York Vault asks for 3 of the words, for example Enter words 3, 7 and 11. Type them from your paper, not from memory.
5. Tap Check words. If a word does not match, York Vault tells you which one, for example “Word 7 does not match. Check your paper and try again.”

When the words match, York Vault suggests that you keep the paper with your passport or other documents, and that you do not keep a photo of it on this phone.

Where to keep it

• On paper, in a place you already protect. A drawer with your passport, a home safe, or a sealed envelope with a person you trust.
• Not on this phone. A screenshot or a note on the same phone is lost with the phone, and anyone who opens the phone can read it.
• Not in a shared cloud folder or an email to yourself, if other people can open that account.

If you print the PDF, delete the PDF from Files after you print it.

Why York Vault cannot show the key again

Anyone who opens your library could copy a key that the app can display. So York Vault shows the words once and never stores them in a readable form. If you lose the paper but still know your code, you can make a new key. The new key replaces the old one, and the old words stop working.

Using the key

On the lock screen, tap Use recovery key. Enter the 12 words. York Vault opens your library and asks you to set a new code. The recovery key has its own count of wrong tries, separate from the code.

To move to a new phone with the key, see Move to a new iPhone. If you forgot your code, see Forgot your code.

If you lose the code and the key

If you lose both, we cannot open your library or your backup, and nobody else can either. This is the cost of a design where we hold no copy of your keys.

The one exception is the optional slow reset through your Apple Account, or your Google account on Android. It is off by default, and it helps only if you turned it on before you lost the code and the key. It needs your phone passcode and waits 72 hours before it lets you set a new code. During the wait, a banner shows on your other devices, and the right code or key cancels it. See Forgot your code for the steps.