What do I do if I forgot my passphrase?

Caution: This article is intended for users of the Unchained platform only. Our support staff is only able to help if you are an active and paying client. If you are not an Unchained client, we recommend visiting the website for the manufacturer of your hardware wallet.

Passphrases are a double-edged sword; they may provide some extra security by obfuscating the seed phrase but are often a problematic single point of failure in singlesig wallets. There is no way to recover or reset a lost or forgotten passphrase.

We do not recommend using passphrases for multisig wallets, but if you decided to use one for one of the keys in your multisig setup and can no longer remember it, you can still recover your funds and move them to a new setup with a new key that does not have a passphrase.

Note: A passphrase and a PIN are different. A PIN is commonly used to protect hardware wallets with or without a passphrase. A PIN protects access to the hardware wallet; it does not protect or change the seed phrase as a passphrase does. If you forgot your PIN, follow our instructions for dealing with that issue.

Try guessing your passphrase:

A common solution is to guess multiple possible passphrases and try using the hardware wallet again. You may need to try many times. Passphrases are case sensitive, so try multiple combinations. Some common passphrases could be the following:

Your hardware wallet PIN
A different common PIN you use, like for your smartphone, computer, or debit card
The name or nickname you gave the device
The word "passphrase." Also try the case-sensitive "Passphrase" and "PASSPHRASE."
Your Unchained account password or other common password you use
A single space, or try a space at the end of your other guesses.
Your seed phrase

We recommend performing a key replacement

1. Acquire or reset a replacement hardware wallet.

If you forgot your passphrase, the best thing to do is purchase a replacement hardware wallet in order to generate a new key to perform a key replacement on the Unchained platform. It's generally best to purchase hardware directly from the manufacturer. See the full list of hardware wallets that Unchained supports.

If you have an old or unused hardware wallet, you can use that one as well.

2. Initialize the hardware wallet as new or restore seed phrase

Next, initialize the brand new (or newly-reset) hardware wallet. This generates a new seed phrase which generates the public key that you will upload to the Unchained platform.

Optional: Restore the same seed phrase for this key

Importantly, the original seed phrase backup you made for this key, if you have it, is still valid. This will export a different private key without the passphrase.

3. Conduct a key replacement

Follow our step-by-step guide to replace your key. It may help to open the guide in another browser tab while you perform the key replacement. Please contact us if you need any help with these steps.