How to Recover Your Identity

Lost your device? Learn how to recover your identity using your secret 12-word recovery phrase.

Your Mercury identity is defined by a unique cryptographic private key stored on your device. Losing your device means
losing this key. However, by using your 12-word recovery phrase, you can regenerate the exact same key on a new device,
restoring your identity and access to your contacts.

Prerequisite: You must have your 12-word recovery phrase written down and stored in a safe place. If you have lost
your recovery phrase, your identity is not recoverable.

Steps to Recover on a New Device

  1. Install Mercury: Download and install the Mercury application on your new device.

  2. Choose the "Restore" Option: When you first launch the app, you will be presented with a choice to "Create New
    Identity" or "Restore from Recovery Phrase". Select the restore option.

  3. Enter Your Phrase: Carefully type your 12 words into the text field.

    • The words must be in the correct order.
    • The words must be spelled correctly.
    • All words should be in lowercase.
    • Separate each word with a single space.

  4. Confirm and Restore: After entering the phrase, tap the "Recover" button. The app will use the phrase to
    mathematically regenerate your original private key.

What is Restored?

  • Your Identity: Your unique Mercury ID (your public key) will be restored. You will be able to prove you are the
    same person.
  • Your Contacts: Your existing contacts will still have you on their contact list. When you connect to them, your
    cryptographic signature will match, and they will know it's you.

What is NOT Restored?

Your recovery phrase only restores your core identity (your private key). The following data is stored locally on your
old device and is not restored by this process:

  • Message and Call History: Your past conversations are not part of the recovery phrase.
  • Contact List: You will need to re-add your contacts. However, when you re-add a confirmed contact, they will not
    need to approve you again, as your identity is the same.
  • Profile Information: Your display name, bio, and photo will need to be set up again.

To restore your message history and contact list, you must use the Backup and Restore feature, which creates a full,
encrypted backup of the application's database. The recovery phrase is a last resort for identity-only recovery.