First, take a breath. With B28 your money does not live on your phone. It lives on the blockchain, and it is controlled by your recovery phrase, not by the device. A lost or stolen phone does not mean lost funds, as long as your phrase is safe and your device was locked. This page walks you through it calmly, step by step.
Why your funds are not on the phone
B28 is non-custodial. Your phone holds a copy of your keys, stored in secure hardware behind your biometrics or device PIN, but the funds themselves sit on the chain. Whoever holds the recovery phrase controls the funds. So there are really only two questions that matter when a phone goes missing: can a thief get past your lock to use the app, and do you still have your recovery phrase. The steps below address both.
What protects you right now
- Your device lock. The B28 app sits behind your phone's biometrics or PIN, and your keys are in secure hardware. A thief who cannot unlock your phone cannot open your wallet or sign a transaction.
- Your recovery phrase, kept offline. Because you wrote it down and stored it safely, you can rebuild your wallet on any new device whenever you like.
If you never saved your recovery phrase and the phone is gone for good, the wallet may not be recoverable, because no one else holds a copy. This is the honest trade-off of self-custody, and it is exactly why backing up your phrase matters so much.
Do this immediately
- Lock or wipe the phone remotely. Use your phone maker's find-my-device service to lock it, and erase it if you believe it is truly gone. This removes the local copy of your keys from the lost device.
- Confirm you have your recovery phrase. Find your written backup and check the words are correct and in order.
- Restore on a new device. Install B28 on a phone you trust, choose to restore a wallet, and enter your recovery phrase. Your full balance and history reappear, because they were always on the chain.
- If you fear your phrase was exposed, move your funds. If you think someone may have seen your recovery phrase (not just taken the phone), create a brand new wallet on the restored device and send your funds to it straight away. A phrase that another person has seen can never be made safe again.
Why B28 cannot freeze or move your funds for you
You may wish we could just lock your account or move your money to safety from our side. We cannot, and that is the point. B28 never holds your keys, so there is no switch on our end to flip and no balance for us to touch. The same design that stops us from helping in this moment is what stops anyone else, including a hacker, a government, or a rogue employee, from freezing or seizing your money on a normal day. An account no one can take from you is also an account no one can rescue for you. The protection and the responsibility are the same thing.
What we can offer is this guidance, a wallet built to keep keys in secure hardware behind your lock, and the Sentinel scam-shield that warns you before risky signs. The rest is in your hands, which is where, with self-custody, it belongs.
Before it ever happens: prepare now
- Back up your recovery phrase offline and store it somewhere safe. See Self-custody & your keys.
- Use a strong device lock and keep biometrics on, so a lost phone cannot be opened.
- Keep find-my-device turned on so you can lock or wipe a lost phone quickly.
- Never store your phrase on the phone itself, as a photo, screenshot, or note, where a thief could find it.
Report a security problem
If you have found a security bug in B28, or believe your wallet was targeted in a way others should know about, please tell us at security@joinb28.app. We read every report. Please remember that we will never ask for your recovery phrase, and you should never include it in a message to us or anyone else.