Passphrase
25th word · 13th word · BIP39 passphrase
A passphrase is an optional extra secret combined with a seed phrase under BIP39, so that the same words open a different wallet for every different passphrase.
The passphrase is added to the salt of the key-stretching step that turns the seed phrase into a seed. Changing a single character changes every key and address.
Its value is that a stolen or photographed seed phrase is no longer enough on its own. Its risk is that it is stored nowhere: a forgotten or mistyped passphrase opens an empty wallet, and the coins behind the real one cannot be recovered without it.
It is not the device PIN, which only unlocks the hardware. See is a BIP39 passphrase worth it?
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