# Emergency Recovery

Because EtheLock relies on physical hardware, losing your card is equivalent to losing part of your private key. The recovery process is different from traditional seed phrases.

#### The Philosophy

We do not issue a 24-word seed phrase by default, as these are frequently phishing targets. Instead, we offer a **Digital Backup** file.

#### Creating a Backup

During your first session, we highly recommend creating a recovery anchor.

1. Go to **Settings > Security > Backup**.
2. The system will generate an encrypted JSON file.
3. This file contains your wallet entropy, encrypted heavily using your PIN and a secondary salt.

#### Storage

Store this file separately from your card.

* **Cloud:** Google Drive, iCloud, or Dropbox (acceptable because the file is encrypted).
* **Physical:** A USB drive stored in a safe location.

#### How to Recover

If your card is lost, stolen, or damaged:

1. Open the EtheLock Dashboard.
2. Select **"Recover Wallet"**.
3. Upload your backup JSON file.
4. Enter the PIN associated with that backup.
5. The system will reconstruct your private key.
6. **Immediate Action:** You should immediately transfer all funds to a new EtheLock wallet derived from a new NFC card.


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