Back Up Organization Keys
It is crucial that you back up your private keys after you activate your Fordefi account. A backup will allow you to retain access to your private keys in either of the following cases:
- You lose access to all the mobile devices in your organization on which the Fordefi app has been installed.
- You wish to use your private keys independently of Fordefi. Doing so protects you even in the unlikely event that something unforeseen happens to the key material on the Fordefi side.
After you activate your organization, you are required to perform a backup of your private keys within seven days. If seven days have elapsed without a backup, your organization will be temporarily prevented from creating transactions or vaults until you complete the backup.
Backup methods
Fordefi provides admins with two quick and easy methods to back up an organization's private keys:
- Recovery Phrases: With this method, two admins are designated to each create and hold a recovery phrase. The two phrases are required to recover an organization's private keys. Learn more.
- Public Key Upload: With this method, you can use a backup key that was created on an air-gapped machine. You upload the public key to Fordefi, while the private key remains on the air-gapped machine. Learn more.
In addition to the backups that you initiate, Fordefi regularly sends you an encrypted backup snapshot over email.
Prerequisites for recovery
To recover its private keys, an organization must possess the following:
- The encrypted backup snapshot.
- The recovery phrase of each dedicated admin (when using the Recovery Phrases backup method), or the private key that was generated on the air-gapped machine (when using the Public Key Upload backup method).
- The recovery tool that is provided with your Fordefi account.
Together, they allow you to reconstruct the private keys independently of Fordefi.