According to CoinDesk, wallet maker Ledger has launched its 'Recover' option, which has been met with criticism from some crypto users who believe the service undermines the company's commitment to privacy and security. Recover is now available on Ledger's most popular wallet, Nano X, and provides a backup for users' recovery seed phrases. Seed phrases are a random string of 12 or 24 words that a user must remember to regain access to their crypto wallet. If the user forgets these words or loses their written record, the digital assets become unrecoverable.
Ledger's Recover service involves encrypting users' private keys, duplicating them, and dividing them into three pieces held by three different parties: Ledger, crypto security firm Coincover, and an independent backup service provider. Critics argue that Ledger is asking customers to pay for a service that makes their private key more vulnerable. However, CEO Pascal Gauthier maintains that the service meets the demand from users who want assurance that their crypto holdings are not solely dependent on them remembering a random string of words. Gauthier stated that many people have lost their digital assets due to forgetting their Secret Recovery Phrase, which prevents them from using crypto and self-custody.
