# What Is a Seed Phrase? How Does a Recovery Phrase Work? A seed phrase, also called a recovery phrase, is a list of words that restores a crypto wallet. Under the BIP-39 standard it has 12, 15, 18, 21 or 24 words. Because the wallet's keys are derived from it, anyone who obtains the phrase can access the assets. Share it with no one, including support teams and websites. 6 min read · Updated: 25 October 2026 · Reviewed by the Lzzo.com editorial team ## Key points - A seed phrase is the word list that restores access after the wallet app is deleted or the device fails. - Whoever knows the phrase controls the wallet; a legitimate service, a support agent or a website never asks for it. - There are two separate risks: a lost phrase cuts off access, and a phrase in the wrong hands lets the assets be moved. The BIP-39 details follow the text marked Deployed in the bitcoin/bips repository; the custody warnings follow the ethereum.org and bitcoin.org pages, the investor.gov bulletin of 12 December 2025 and Law No. 7518 as published in the Official Gazette on 2 July 2024. Sources were read on 25 October 2026; later changes should be checked separately. ## What is a seed phrase and what does it unlock? A seed phrase, also called a recovery phrase, is a randomly generated list of words. The US Securities and Exchange Commission's investor bulletin of 12 December 2025, on investor.gov, says a wallet stores the private keys, not the crypto asset itself. The phrase can restore the wallet if the device or app is damaged. bitcoin.org says most modern wallets are deterministic: one backup restores all past and future addresses. ethereum.org calls it the wallet's master key. ## How are the words generated, and what does 12 words mean? BIP-39 generates 128 to 256 bits of random data and adds a checksum from its SHA-256 digest. The bits are split into groups of 11; each group selects one word from a 2,048-word list. - 12 words: 128 bits + 4 checksum bits (12 × 11 = 132 bits). - 15 words: 160 bits + 5 bits. 18 words: 192 bits + 6 bits. - 21 words: 224 bits + 7 bits. 24 words: 256 bits + 8 bits. ## How should a recovery phrase be stored, and how should it not be? investor.gov says to keep the phrase in a secure place and not to share it with anyone. ethereum.org warns against screenshots, which can sync to a cloud service; taking keys from the cloud is a common attacker method. - Online copy: bitcoin.org says any online backup is highly vulnerable to theft. - Single location: bitcoin.org calls a single point of failure poor security; copies can be kept in several physical places on durable media. - Family: if nobody knows where the wallet or its passwords are kept, the assets may never be recovered, so relatives need a plan (bitcoin.org). - Balance: each extra copy lowers the risk of loss but raises the chance of exposure. ## What does a message asking for the recovery phrase mean? ethereum.org is clear: no legitimate service, support agent or website asks for a recovery phrase or private key. The words are entered only when you restore a wallet yourself, into a wallet app downloaded from its official source or on a [hardware wallet](https://lzzo.com/learn/hot-vs-cold-crypto-wallets)'s own screen. A page opened from a link, an app that arrives in a message, a "verification" form or a person offering help that asks for the words is a trap. ## What happens if the recovery phrase is lost or stolen? If it is lost, access is not gone while the wallet still opens on a device; if that device is also lost or fails, nothing is left to restore from. investor.gov says losing the private key permanently cuts off access to the assets, so while the wallet is open, create a new wallet, back up its new phrase and move the assets there. ethereum.org notes that no company, support team or help desk stands behind Ethereum. If it is stolen, ethereum.org says to move the remaining assets to a new wallet the attacker cannot access. Create the new wallet, with its own new phrase, on a device not suspected of compromise: if malware stole the phrase, one made on the same device may be exposed too. The old phrase is never used again. ## Is there a recovery phrase for assets held on an exchange or with a custodian? Generally no: for assets held on an exchange or with a custodian, the institution manages the keys and access runs through the account login. In your own wallet you manage the keys. investor.gov says that if the institution is attacked, closes or goes bankrupt, access may be lost. In Türkiye, Law No. 7518 (Official Gazette, 2 July 2024, issue 32590) defines custody as storing or managing platform customers' crypto assets or the private keys that transfer them. For assets you have moved to your own wallet, the phrase is your responsibility. ## Worked example ### Keeping the same phrase in how many places: loss or exposure? 1. Assumption: each copy has a 2% chance of being lost within a year and a 1% chance of falling into someone else's hands; copies are independent. 2. Formulas: the chance that all copies are lost = 0.02^n; the chance that at least one is exposed = 1 − 0.99^n. 3. 1 copy: loss 2%, exposure 1%. 4. 2 copies: loss 0.02 × 0.02 = 0.04%; exposure 1 − 0.99 × 0.99 = 1.99%. 5. 3 copies: loss 0.0008%; exposure 1 − 0.970299 = 2.97%. 6. Result: more copies cut the loss chance quickly but raise the exposure chance roughly with their number. Illustrative example: the percentages are assumptions, not observed values. Copies kept in the same house can be lost together. ## Common mistakes and risks - Keeping the words as a screenshot, a note or an email, which can sync to cloud services. - Typing the phrase into a website, a verification form or a message to a support agent. - Keeping the only backup in one place, where a fire or flood can destroy every copy. - Not recording the word order: the seed is computed from the words in the order written, so a changed order either opens a different wallet or fails the checksum and makes the phrase invalid. - Creating the wallet with a passphrase but leaving it out of the backup; the words alone then open a different wallet. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the difference between 12-word and 24-word phrases? BIP-39 gives a 12-word phrase 128 bits of random data and a 24-word phrase 256 bits, each with a checksum. ### Is a seed phrase the same as a private key? No, but both give control of the assets. investor.gov defines a private key as the password that authorizes transactions; a seed phrase regenerates the keys, so one backup restores all addresses (bitcoin.org). ### Can a seed phrase use words in Turkish? No. The BIP-39 repository has no Turkish word list. The standard also strongly discourages word lists other than English, since most BIP-39 wallets support only the English list. Translating the words gives a completely different seed. ### Can I restore the same words in a different wallet app? BIP-39 defines only how words become a seed. The standard carried no version information, so there was no way to tell which address format to use; the text says descriptor wallets largely mitigate this problem. Even so, the same words may show different addresses in some apps. ### What does a passphrase added to a seed phrase do? The passphrase is optional in BIP-39. The salt combines "mnemonic" and the passphrase, so each passphrase gives a valid but different wallet. ## Related pages on Lzzo.com - [Crypto prices](https://lzzo.com/crypto) - [Bitcoin price page](https://lzzo.com/crypto/bitcoin) - [Ethereum price page](https://lzzo.com/crypto/ethereum) - [Data methodology](https://lzzo.com/methodology) - [Crypto guides](https://lzzo.com/learn/crypto) ## Sources 1. investor.gov 2. ethereum.org 3. bitcoin.org 4. github.com 5. resmigazete.gov.tr Primary and official publications. Author: [Lzzo Editor](https://lzzo.com/lzzo-editor) Content last changed on 25 October 2026. Reviewed by the Lzzo.com editorial team on 25 October 2026. This page is for education only and is not investment advice. Crypto assets carry a high level of risk. ## Related pages - [Stablecoin](https://lzzo.com/learn/what-is-a-stablecoin) - [Hot vs Cold Crypto Wallets](https://lzzo.com/learn/hot-vs-cold-crypto-wallets) - [Common Crypto Scams](https://lzzo.com/learn/common-crypto-scams) - [Open the Learn section](https://lzzo.com/learn) --- Canonical HTML page: https://lzzo.com/learn/what-is-a-seed-phrase · Not investment advice.