Create and protect your Bitcoin seed phrase

Before setup

Prepare a trusted, private workspace

• Obtain the wallet from its manufacturer or an authorized seller, and follow the manufacturer’s authenticity checks.
• Install and verify current firmware using the manufacturer’s official website and instructions before creating the wallet.
• Choose a private location where cameras, microphones, smart speakers, windows, and other people cannot observe the recovery words.
• Set aside enough uninterrupted time. Rushing, multitasking, and working in a cluttered area make transcription mistakes more likely.

Wallet creation

Generate the recovery phrase with a supported method

A reputable hardware wallet running verified, current firmware is designed to generate the cryptographic randomness needed for a secure recovery phrase. Security still depends on the device, firmware, and implementation operating as intended.

Adding your own entropy +

Some wallets provide a documented way to mix independently generated randomness—often physical dice rolls—into the wallet’s own entropy. This can provide defense in depth, but it is optional and must be done correctly.

• Use only a feature explicitly supported by your wallet and follow that model’s current instructions exactly.
• Use fair, independent, private rolls or the entropy source specified by the manufacturer. Do not fabricate a random-looking sequence.
• Meet the manufacturer’s stated minimum. Required inputs and the way they are combined differ between wallets.
• Treat the entropy sequence as secret key material. Do not photograph, save, reuse, or enter it into a networked computer.
• Never construct a seed manually unless you have the expertise to verify the complete process in a suitable offline environment.

Important: More steps do not automatically mean more security. An unsupported or incomplete method can weaken the wallet or make recovery impossible.

Private recording

Keep the words completely offline

• Record every word in its exact numbered position. Check spelling and order against the wallet display before leaving setup.
• Write and mark silently. Do not dictate the words or read them aloud around phones, computers, cameras, or voice assistants.
• Never photograph, scan, photocopy, email, text, print, or save the words in notes, password managers, cloud storage, or removable digital media.
• Never enter the phrase into Punchplate.com, a support form, chat, or a general-purpose connected computer.
• Do not accept remote help from anyone who asks to see, hear, verify, or “synchronize” the recovery words.

Before relying on it

Prove the finished Punchplate can recover the wallet

1. 1

   Practice with the punch tool on separate material. Adjust it until it makes a clear, controlled indent.

2. 2

   Mark the Punchplate privately, following the instructions for that specific plate format.

3. 3

   Inspect every word position and mark. Correct unclear or mistaken marks before proceeding.

4. 4

   Put the original written words and every other copy out of view.

5. 5

   Use the wallet manufacturer’s built-in backup-check feature when available, or its documented recovery procedure on a trusted signing device.

6. 6

   Recover using only the completed Punchplate as the source for the words. For a split or share-based plan, use only the intended set of plates; include a separately stored passphrase if the wallet requires one.

7. 7

   Confirm the expected wallet fingerprint, account, or receiving address. When appropriate, send a small test transaction before transferring a meaningful balance.

Do not reset your only working wallet merely to test a backup unless you understand the manufacturer’s recovery process and the risk involved. A built-in recovery-check function or a spare trusted device is preferable when available.

Optional advanced feature

Use a passphrase only with a complete recovery plan

A BIP-39 passphrase creates a different wallet from the same recovery words. It can add protection, but it also adds another secret that must be reproduced exactly.

• A passphrase is not a wallet PIN and is not a substitute for securely generated recovery words.
• Every passphrase—including a typo—can produce a valid but different wallet. Confirm the wallet fingerprint or receiving address before depositing funds.
• A forgotten, misspelled, or unavailable passphrase can permanently prevent recovery.
• If you use one, make it strong and unique, record it exactly, test it, and create a deliberate storage and inheritance plan.
• Storing it separately from the recovery words can reduce one risk while increasing another: losing either component prevents access.

If you are not confident that you or your intended successor can reproduce the passphrase years from now, do not use the feature until you have a reliable plan.

Long-term protection

Store for both security and recovery

• Keep the Punchplate physically separate from the wallet it restores.
• Choose a location protected from unauthorized access, accidental disposal, and environmental damage.
• Consider more than one secure location when loss at a single location is a meaningful risk. Each additional copy also increases the number of places that must remain private.
• Avoid labels or instructions that unnecessarily advertise the backup’s purpose to an unauthorized finder.
• Create an inheritance plan appropriate to your household and holdings. Make it understandable without placing every secret together in an unsecured document.
• Review the plan after moving, changing wallets, changing a passphrase, or changing who should be able to recover it.

Ongoing care

Maintain the setup without exposing it

• Get firmware and security information from the wallet manufacturer’s official channels, not unsolicited messages or links.
• Periodically confirm that the Punchplate is present, legible, and stored as planned without photographing or digitizing it.
• Use the manufacturer’s backup-check process when re-verification is appropriate.
• If you become uncertain about seed generation or exposure, do not share or enter the existing words online. Read the manufacturer’s current guidance and proceed calmly.
• When a new wallet is required, generate it using a verified process, back it up, test it, verify an address, move a small amount first, and keep the prior backup until migration is fully confirmed.