Finocket keeps a copy of your books on your device so the app works with no signal. That copy is encrypted, and the only thing that opens it is the passcode you set on this device. Finocket does not hold a copy of that passcode, and neither does anyone else — which is what stops a lost phone from becoming a leaked ledger.
The one consequence is that a forgotten passcode is a real problem. A recovery key is the answer: a second way in, held by you and by nobody else.
What a recovery key looks like
Twenty-four characters in six groups of four, like 4RJP-8W0T-9NEK-2XCB-5HVA-QM7Z. It uses only digits and capital letters, and it deliberately leaves out the four characters people confuse when copying by hand — there is no letter I, L, O or U in a recovery key, so a “0” is always a zero and a “1” is always a one.
Typing it back is forgiving. Lower case is fine, the dashes are optional, and if you write an O where a zero belongs, or an l where a 1 belongs, Finocket reads what you meant.
Make one
- Go to Settings → Account & privacy → Recovery key.
- Enter your app passcode. Making a new way in requires proving you are already in.
- The key appears once. Save it as a file, or copy it into a password manager, before you leave the screen.
On a phone or tablet the Save as a file button opens your device’s share sheet, so you can put the key into Files, Drive, Notes or a password manager. In a browser it downloads a small text file.
Where to keep it
- A password manager. This is the best answer for most people.
- Printed, in a locked drawer or a safe, with your other business papers.
- Not a screenshot in your photo library, and not a note on the same phone. Anyone holding your device and your recovery key can read your books — keeping both in the same place removes the point of having one.
Use it when you have forgotten your passcode
- Open the same Recovery key screen.
- Type the key and choose a new passcode.
- Your data unlocks and the new passcode is active from then on. The old one stops working.
Your recovery key still works afterwards. Using it does not spend it — somebody who has already forgotten one secret should not be made to look after a new one the same day.
Making a new key retires the old one
The moment you generate a new recovery key, the previous one stops working. If you think the old one has been seen by someone else, make a new one; if you find an old printed sheet, it is safe to shred once you have made a newer key.
Add a workspace, make a new key
A recovery key covers the workspaces that were on the device when it was made. If you start keeping another workspace on this device afterwards, that one is not covered — and it cannot be added to your existing key, because Finocket does not have a copy of it to add anything to. The Recovery key screen says how many workspaces are covered and warns you when one is not. Making a new key covers everything again.
Losing both
If you lose your passcode and your recovery key, the work on that device that has not yet reached Finocket’s servers cannot be recovered — not by you, not by support, not by anybody. Everything that has already synced is safe and comes back when you sign in again on any device.
That is the honest trade you are being offered: nobody, including us, can read your books off your device, and the price is that nobody, including us, can rescue you from losing both secrets.
Related
- Account & privacy — export your data, or close your account.
- Closing your Finocket account.