What is the Blockrise Seed?
The Blockrise Seed is the authorisation credential that controls the bitcoin held in a Blockrise account. It consists of 24 randomly generated words and is created during wallet setup.
What the Blockrise Seed does
The Blockrise Seed is used to authorise transactions on the account. The client who holds the Blockrise Seed holds authorisation power over the bitcoin in the associated account. Without the Blockrise Seed, no transaction can be signed.
The Blockrise Seed is not the same as the private key
The private key that controls the bitcoin is held inside Blockrise's Hardware Security Modules (HSMs). It is not accessible to Blockrise employees, and it cannot leave the HSM. The Blockrise Seed sits alongside the private key as a separate authorisation credential: a transaction is only signed by the HSM when the correct Blockrise Seed is presented.
A useful analogy is the QR code: a QR code is a user-friendly representation of a URL. In the same way, the 24-word Blockrise Seed is a user-friendly representation of the underlying cryptographic material. The seed is easier to handle than the raw key while providing the same authorisation function.
How the Blockrise Seed is stored
The Blockrise Seed is generated once, during wallet setup, and cannot be changed afterwards. Two storage methods are available:
- Quick Setup: the Blockrise Seed is encrypted on the device and stored using Cloud Recovery. The client never sees the 24 words. See How to set up your Blockrise wallet.
- Advanced Setup: the Blockrise Seed is displayed once during setup, and the client is responsible for storing it offline. See How to set up your Blockrise wallet using Advanced Setup.
Both methods are supported. The choice depends on the client's preference for cloud-based recovery versus offline self-storage.
Blockrise will never ask for the Blockrise Seed
Blockrise support and the wider Blockrise team will never ask a client to share the Blockrise Seed. If someone claiming to represent Blockrise requests the Blockrise Seed, contact support@blockrise.com immediately.