How a Passphrase Can Save Your Crypto and NFTs

Aug 09, 2025

Hello! Happy Saturday!

In the crypto world, your wallet is like your treasure chest. Inside it, you keep your coins, arts and other NFTs, and other valuable things. But just like a treasure chest, it needs strong protection. A passphrase is one of the best tools you can use to protect your wallet. It is like adding an extra lock that only you can open.

Let’s talk about that.

What is a Seed Phrase?

When you create a crypto wallet, it gives you 12 or 24 special words. These words are called a seed phrase (or recovery phrase). They are the “master key” to your wallet. If you lose them, you lose your wallet. If someone else gets them, they can take everything inside your wallet.

Important: You should always write your seed phrase on paper or metal and store it offline. Never type it on a website, chat, or email.

What is a Passphrase?

A passphrase is an extra secret word or sentence that you can add to your seed phrase.
Think of it like this:

Seed phrase only: One lock on your treasure chest.
Seed phrase + passphrase: Two locks on your treasure chest.

If someone finds your seed phrase but doesn’t know your passphrase, they cannot open your wallet.

How to Set a Seed Phrase and Passphrase

Creating a seed phrase:
- When you make a new wallet (for example, in Ledger, Trezor, Electrum, MyEtherWallet, or other wallets what support passphrase), the wallet will give you 12 or 24 random words.
- Write them down on paper and store them somewhere safe.
Adding a passphrase:
- After taking notes of the 12 or 24 words, search for the feature to add a passphrase.
- Choose a passphrase that is strong but easy for you to remember.
- Write it down and store it offline in a different safe place from your seed phrase.
Test your backup:
- Try recovering your wallet with your seed phrase + passphrase on another device (offline) to make sure it works.
- For example, you can download the Ian Coleman BIP39 tool from the official GitHub page and save it on your computer and then test your seed phrase + passphrase on an off-line computer.
- A good tip is to install an operational system in an USB device and boot your computer using this USB device, so that you can access the Ian Coleman BIT39 tool you downloaded before in a completely off-line and clean operational system.

Why a Passphrase Protects Your Wallet

It adds an extra layer of security
If someone finds your seed phrase, they still need your passphrase to open your wallet.
It makes hacking much harder
Without a passphrase, a thief only needs one thing. With a passphrase, they need two secrets.
It can hide your main wallet
You can use a passphrase to create a “hidden” wallet. This means you can keep a small wallet for decoy purposes and a secret wallet for your real assets.
It works like a master key
A different passphrase creates a completely different wallet, even with the same seed phrase.
It helps protect you from phishing
If you type your seed phrase on a fake website by mistake, they still cannot reach your real wallet without the passphrase.

You can watch this video from Trezor about passphrases:

Final Remarks

A passphrase is simple to create, but it makes your wallet much safer. Think of it as a secret door behind your main door. The more barriers you have, the harder it is for thieves to get in. Always keep both your seed phrase and passphrase offline and in different safe places. They are your keys to your crypto life.

Yet, if you wanna read something more, my suggestion is these two articles below!