Recovery phrases have been one of the most requested features for Internet Identity 2.0. They are now fully supported on id.ai and no longer require an identity number.
Recovery phrases created in Internet Identity 1.0 can be use on the new Internet Identity 2.0 website, even for identities that have not yet been upgraded. These identities will be automatically upgraded during the recovery process.
With this update, Internet Identity 2.0 reaches feature parity with Internet Identity 1.0, enabling dapps to switch to 2.0 with confidence in the coming weeks and months.
Recovery Flow Improvements
The recovery flow has been redesigned to address several common problems observed previously:
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Immediate activation of recovery phrases
Previously, recovery phrases were not active until users completed verification, which sometimes led to users assuming they could recover an identity when they could not. Now, the recovery phrase is active as soon as it is shown, so anything the user writes down can be used immediately, even if they skip the verification step. -
Guidance to write down the recovery phrase
Users are clearly guided to record their recovery phrase. If they are unable to verify it correctly during the verification step, they can review the recovery phrase again to ensure it is recorded properly. -
Verification to ensure correctness
Users confirm their recovery phrase by clicking the words in order, rather than typing them manually. This method guarantees that all words are correct and in the proper order while keeping the process as simple as possible for the user, which is especially important on mobile devices. -
Providing clear guidance during recovery attempts
When attempting to recover an identity using a recovery phrase, the system clearly explains the outcome:- If the recovery phrase is associated with an existing identity, the user is informed which identity it belongs to.
- If the recovery phrase is invalid (fails the BIP-39 checksum, for example due to an incorrect word or incorrect word order), it is clearly marked as invalid.
- If the recovery phrase is valid but does not match any identity, the user is informed that it may belong to another product.
Recommended: set up a recovery phrase
It is highly recommended that all users set up a recovery phrase for their identity.
A recovery phrase allows recovery of an identity if, for example:
- Access to a passkey is lost, such as:
- A physical security key (for example a YubiKey) is lost
- A device containing the passkey is lost or reset
- Access to a password manager account storing the passkey is lost
- Access to a linked account is lost, such as losing access to a Google account used for authentication
Happy holidays from the Identity Team! 