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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchIf a recovery phrase, wallet backup, or private key may have been seen or copied, treat the wallet as compromised. Generate a completely new wallet and backup on a trusted hardware device, then move every asset from the affected wallet to addresses controlled by the new wallet. Replacing the device or restoring the old phrase on new hardware does not revoke keys that someone else may already possess.
Keep the new backup offline, never disclose it to support, and verify receiving addresses and transaction details on the device’s trusted display before approving transfers. The exact emergency procedure depends on the manufacturer and the incident, so use official support documentation for device, firmware, or tampering concerns.
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What a suspected compromise means
A hardware wallet protects private keys by generating and using them on a dedicated device. The recovery phrase (also called a seed phrase or wallet backup) is a human-readable representation of those keys. It is not merely a password and it is not made safe by being written on paper. Anyone who obtains the phrase can generally restore the wallet elsewhere and authorize transactions for its associated accounts.
Ledger’s safety guidance says never to share the phrase or type it into a computer or phone. That includes photographs, cloud notes, messaging apps, web forms, screenshots, and “verification” tools. Trezor likewise warns that support agents should never need the backup. A person claiming to be customer support who asks for it is an attack, not a recovery service.
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Use the strict response whenever the phrase or backup was exposed, even briefly:
- It was seen by another person, photographed, copied, or written in an online location.
- It was typed into a computer, phone, website, wallet app, or support chat.
- A device, computer, or storage location containing the phrase may have been accessed by malware or an unauthorized person.
- You cannot confidently establish that the phrase stayed private.
If only the physical device is missing or damaged and the backup is still believed private, the remedy can be different. That distinction matters because recovering the same phrase restores the same keys; it does not rotate them.
Do this first: contain the exposure
- Stop entering the old backup anywhere. Do not test it in another wallet, photograph it for “proof,” upload it for analysis, or send it to a person offering help. If it has already been entered somewhere, assume it is exposed.
- Do not approve new transactions from a device or computer you suspect is tampered with. Disconnect the setup if malware, remote access, or a modified device is a concern. Do not try to diagnose a potentially hostile environment by typing the phrase into it.
- Record what must be moved without recording the phrase. List the networks, accounts, tokens, staking positions, multisig arrangements, and smart-contract relationships you actually use. The cited vendor guidance says to move funds, but it does not enumerate every chain or product configuration.
- Use official manufacturer support only for device-specific emergencies. Trezor’s terms direct users who believe a wallet backup may have been compromised to the Emergency Section of its manual. Do not give the backup to an agent, moderator, or “recovery specialist.”
Do not wait for an unauthorized transaction before acting. A copied phrase can be used later, from another device, without any visible sign that the original hardware wallet was touched.
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The deciding question is whether the backup or private keys may have been exposed, not whether the hardware still turns on.
| Situation | Appropriate action | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Phrase or backup may have been seen, typed, photographed, uploaded, or copied | Create a new wallet with a new backup and transfer assets | Exposed keys cannot be revoked; restoring the old phrase preserves the risk |
| Device is lost or backup is missing, but the wallet remains accessible on the device | Create a new wallet and move funds immediately | Trezor’s missing-backup guidance says a missing backup cannot be regenerated |
| Device is damaged, while the backup is confidently private | Recovery on replacement hardware may restore access | The same private keys can be recovered when the backup itself was not exposed |
| Unexpected transaction, suspected malware, coercion, or potentially tampered hardware | Follow the manufacturer’s emergency process and relevant chain or service support | No single universal incident procedure or guaranteed reversal is established by the cited guidance |
When facts are uncertain, use the safer branch: create new keys and transfer assets. A new device is not a security reset if it receives the old phrase.
Create a genuinely new wallet
Use a trusted setup
Begin on a clean, trusted environment and an authentic hardware device obtained through an authorized channel. Follow the device manufacturer’s current setup instructions rather than a video or message supplied by an unknown person. If the incident involves firmware, a modified device, or a suspicious recovery screen, stop and use the manufacturer’s official emergency instructions.
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Generate, do not import, the new backup
- Initialize the hardware wallet as a new wallet, not as a recovery of the suspected phrase.
- Let the device generate the new backup offline. Trezor describes its new backup as generated on the device.
- Write the words exactly as displayed, in the correct order, on a medium kept offline and private. Do not photograph, scan, type, or synchronize them.
- Complete the device’s backup-verification procedure. Verification confirms that you recorded the new words; it does not make the old phrase safe.
- Set the device security controls required by the manufacturer, such as a PIN. Treat those controls as protection for the device, not as a replacement for the backup’s secrecy.
Never import the suspected exposed phrase into the new wallet as a shortcut. That would recreate the same keys and leave the assets exposed to whoever copied them.
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Open the new wallet’s receiving account and compare the address shown by the wallet software with the address displayed on the hardware device. Use the device’s trusted display where supported. Malware can replace a copied address in a computer or phone; checking only the computer screen does not detect that substitution.
For an asset and network where a small transfer is practical, send a test amount first and confirm that it arrives at the new wallet. Trezor’s missing-backup procedure gives testing a receive address with a small amount as an example. A test transfer is a verification step, not a guarantee that a network, address, or later transaction is risk-free.
Move assets out of the affected wallet
Plan the transfer inventory
Make a written checklist of every account and asset controlled by the old phrase. Include separate accounts on each supported network, tokens held by those accounts, staking or delegation positions, collectibles, and any multisig or smart-contract arrangement. Vendor articles instruct users to move funds, but the mechanics and eligibility differ by chain and product.
- Identify the correct network for each asset before creating a transaction.
- Keep enough of the network’s native fee asset in the old account to authorize and broadcast the transfer.
- Check whether staking, lending, vesting, bridges, or contract positions require an unstake, withdrawal, claim, or product-specific migration.
- For multisig wallets, identify every signer and follow the multisig provider’s documented key-replacement process; do not assume a single hardware-wallet transfer changes the signer set.
Transfer in a controlled order
- On the new hardware wallet, display and verify the destination receive address.
- From the affected wallet, prepare a transaction for one asset and the correct network.
- Review the recipient, amount, network, fee, and any contract data on the hardware device before approving. Ledger’s safety guidance emphasizes checking transaction details on the device’s trusted display.
- Broadcast the transaction and wait for the confirmation appropriate to that network.
- Confirm arrival in the new wallet, then repeat for the remaining accounts and assets.
- Recheck the inventory after transfers. A zero balance in one account does not prove that tokens, staking positions, or another network account were moved.
Transfer fees, confirmation times, minimum amounts, and withdrawal rules vary by asset and network. Do not assume that a test amount, a particular fee, or an immediate confirmation applies universally. If a transfer fails, stop and consult the official documentation for that chain or service rather than entering the old phrase into a troubleshooting site.
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Once all assets and relevant positions are confirmed in the new wallet, stop using the old wallet for value. Do not keep it as a “watch-only” signing device unless you fully understand the remaining exposure and the product’s account model. If the old phrase was exposed, anyone who retained it can continue to monitor or spend from any account derived from it. Follow the manufacturer’s secure-reset or disposal instructions for the physical device, but remember that resetting hardware does not erase a phrase already copied by someone else.
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When recovery of the old phrase can be appropriate
Recovery on replacement hardware can restore access when a device is damaged or lost and the backup is still confidently private. It is an access-recovery operation, not key rotation. The replacement device will control the same accounts and the same private keys.
Do not choose this path if the phrase was typed into a computer or phone, shown to another person, stored online, or exposed during a suspected malware or support scam. In those cases, create a new wallet and transfer assets instead. If you cannot establish which situation applies, treat the phrase as exposed.
Protect the new backup and setup
Keep the backup offline
- Store the words where unauthorized people cannot see or copy them.
- Never place them in cloud storage, email, a password manager, a phone note, a printer queue, or a website form.
- Do not send them to a manufacturer, exchange, consultant, friend, or family member for “safekeeping.”
- Consider physical risks such as fire, water, theft, and loss, but do not add an online copy to solve a physical-storage problem.
A durable backup accessory may help with physical resilience, but it cannot repair an exposed phrase. The security decision after exposure is to create new keys and move assets.
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Recognize support and phishing attacks
Use the manufacturer’s official website and documented support channels. Treat unsolicited direct messages, search advertisements, social-media accounts, and chat participants asking for a phrase, PIN, or remote access as hostile. Trezor’s phishing guidance and Ledger’s safety guidance both make the same central point: legitimate support does not need the wallet backup.
Verify every future transaction
Before approving, read the destination, amount, network, and relevant contract details on the hardware wallet’s own display. For receiving funds, verify the receive address on the device before sharing it. A familiar account name in an app is not enough if malicious software can alter what the computer displays.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Special incident branches
An unauthorized transaction already occurred
Move any remaining assets to the new wallet immediately if you can do so safely, preserve transaction IDs and timestamps, and contact the affected chain, exchange, or service through its official support route. Blockchain transfers may be irreversible; do not promise that a transaction can be canceled or recovered. Do not expose the old phrase while seeking help.
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Malware or a compromised computer is suspected
Do not use the suspect computer to enter a backup or approve additional transactions. Use a trusted setup according to the manufacturer’s instructions, and seek official security guidance. If the hardware device itself may have been tampered with, stop using it until the manufacturer’s emergency procedure addresses that specific model and firmware.
Coercion or physical threat is involved
Prioritize personal safety and contact appropriate local authorities or a qualified security professional. Do not improvise a “duress” solution by altering words or entering a phrase into an untrusted tool; such actions can create additional exposure or permanent loss.
Only one account appears affected
Assume the entire phrase-derived wallet is at risk. A phrase can derive many accounts, and the cited guidance does not establish a safe way to keep some accounts on exposed keys while rotating others. Inventory and migrate every relevant account and asset.
Common mistakes that leave the wallet exposed
- Replacing the hardware only: the old phrase still controls the old keys.
- Restoring the old phrase into the new device: this reproduces the compromised wallet instead of creating new keys.
- Waiting for proof of theft: an attacker can hold a copied phrase silently.
- Sending the phrase to “support”: genuine support should not request it.
- Checking addresses only on the computer: address substitution can occur before the device receives the transaction.
- Moving the obvious coin and forgetting the rest: tokens, other networks, staking, collectibles, and contract positions may remain.
- Assuming a test transfer proves everything: it checks one address and transaction path, not every asset or account.
- Leaving no fee balance: an account may be unable to move its remaining assets if the network fee asset was transferred away first.
What the vendor guidance establishes
Trezor’s article “What to do if your Trezor or wallet backup goes missing” (dated 2020) states: “Act immediately by creating a new wallet and moving your assets to a secure location to prevent potential unauthorized access.” Its terms refer users who believe a wallet backup may have been compromised to the Emergency Section of the manual and warn against sharing the backup with purported support agents.
Ledger’s safety article, updated May 7, 2024, says the phrase must not be shared or entered on a computer or phone and advises checking transaction details on the device. Ledger’s hot-wallet guidance, updated April 14, 2026, recommends creating fresh accounts and transferring assets rather than importing a phrase that may already have been exposed.
These are manufacturer recommendations, not a promise that every device, firmware event, chain, or smart-contract position follows the same procedure. They do establish the central rule: suspected phrase exposure requires new keys and a transfer; recovery of the same phrase does not secure exposed assets.
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