GLOSSARY // Crypto
Seed Phrase
A seed phrase is the list of 12 or 24 ordinary words that a wallet generates as the master backup of your private keys. Enter that exact word list into any compatible wallet and you recover full control of the coins, on any device.
Which is exactly why it is the single most dangerous string in crypto. Anyone who sees your seed phrase can drain your wallet from anywhere, instantly and irreversibly, and no company can help you undo it. Legitimate services never ask for it; every message that does is a scam. Write it on paper, store it offline, and never type it into a website.
A user photographs their 12-word phrase for convenience and syncs the photo to the cloud. Months later a breach exposes the photo, an attacker restores the wallet from those words, and the balance is gone within minutes — the backup became the leak.
Related terms
Educational only — not financial advice. Definitions simplified for clarity; markets are messier than definitions.