How Vault Recovery Works

ArkVault uses a combination of a failsafe timer and cryptographic secret sharing to ensure your vault is only accessible when the right conditions are met. This page explains the complete recovery process.

The Failsafe Timer

The failsafe timer is ArkVault's core mechanism for determining when to release a vault:

Status	Condition	What It Means
Secured	Check-in is within your chosen interval	Vault is locked. Only you can access it.
Approaching Deadline	Deadline is less than 7 days away	You receive daily email reminders to check in.
Released	Deadline has passed without a check-in	Trusted contacts can now recover the vault.

You choose your check-in interval when creating a vault — 6 months, 1 year, or 2 years. ArkVault sends escalating email reminders as your deadline approaches, starting months in advance.

The timer is fully automated — there are no manual overrides, no admin controls, and no exceptions. It's enforced by the system's design.

How Secret Sharing Works

ArkVault uses SLIP-39, an open standard for splitting cryptographic keys into multiple shares. Here's how it protects your vault:

When You Create a Vault

A master encryption key is generated in your browser — this key encrypts your vault contents.
Your secrets are encrypted using AES-256-GCM (military-grade encryption) with this master key.
The master key is split into two parts using cryptographic secret sharing:
- One part is encrypted and stored on ArkVault's servers.
- The other part is included in the recovery key given to your trusted contact.
The server stores the encrypted vault and one half of the key. It cannot decrypt anything without the other half.

Why Two Shares?

Neither part alone can reconstruct the master key. This means:

ArkVault can't read your vault — we only have one half, which is useless alone.
Your trusted contact can't read your vault early — they only have the other half, which is also useless alone.
Both parts together reconstruct the master key, which decrypts the vault.

This is the foundation of ArkVault's zero-knowledge architecture: the server provably cannot access your data.

The Recovery Process

When a vault's failsafe timer expires and the status changes to "Released":

Step 1: Trusted Contact Visits ArkVault

Your trusted contact goes to arkvault.app/claim and enters:

The vault owner's email address
The recovery key you provided them

Step 2: Client-Side Decryption

Everything that follows happens in the trusted contact's browser:

The recovery key and the encrypted data from ArkVault's servers are combined to reconstruct the original master key.
The master key decrypts the vault contents.

At no point does ArkVault's server see the master key or the decrypted contents. All cryptographic operations happen entirely in the browser.

Step 3: Destruction Countdown

Once a trusted contact successfully recovers a vault:

A 14-day countdown begins.
After 14 days, the vault is permanently destroyed from ArkVault's servers.
This ensures your data doesn't persist indefinitely after being accessed.

Security Guarantees

Zero-knowledge: The server never sees plaintext data or encryption keys.
No backdoors: There is no master key, admin override, or recovery mechanism that bypasses the cryptography.
Open standards: SLIP-39 and AES-256-GCM are well-audited, widely-used cryptographic standards.
Client-side only: All encryption and decryption happens in the browser. The server only stores encrypted blobs.

Frequently Asked Questions

What if my trusted contact loses the recovery key? Unfortunately, the vault cannot be recovered without the key. ArkVault does not have a copy and cannot generate one. We recommend storing a backup in a physically secure location (e.g., a safe).

Can I change my trusted contacts? Yes. You can update your vault's trusted contacts at any time from your dashboard. New trusted contacts will need the same recovery key.

What if I want to access my own vault? As the vault owner, you can view and edit your vault contents anytime from your dashboard while logged in. The failsafe timer only affects trusted contact access.

Can the timer be paused or extended? No. The timer cannot be manipulated. You can only reset it by checking in. This is by design — it ensures the system works even if you're unable to interact with it.