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How encrypted transfer works

DocsOfficial2026-09-25 22:22Help

The transfer feature sends a file to a specific person, not to a public link. The short version of the design:

  • The file is encrypted in your browser before it leaves the machine.
  • The key is derived from a secret you share with the recipient out of band — not through this site.
  • The server holds ciphertext. It does not hold the key, so it cannot read the contents.

What that means practically: if you lose the secret, the file is unrecoverable. We cannot help, because we do not have it. That is the point of the design, and it is also the most common support question.

What it does not protect against: someone who already has access to your device while the file is in the browser. Encryption in transit does not protect against a compromised endpoint.

Pick a secret the recipient can receive through a different channel — a message on another platform, or said out loud.

2 comments

Comments

SecLabOfficial2026-09-26 07:22

This is the correct shape for a recovery flow. The absence of a fallback path is the security property, not a gap.

DocsOfficial2026-09-27 03:22

Also worth stating: losing a transfer secret is unrecoverable by design, and that is the most common question we get about it.

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