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Remove the 'appears to have changed' wording and add explanation
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andybalaam committed Dec 17, 2024
1 parent 04df819 commit bdbd7b4
Showing 1 changed file with 12 additions and 7 deletions.
19 changes: 12 additions & 7 deletions proposals/4161-crypto-terminology.md
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -169,14 +169,19 @@ fact we confirm identity cryptographically is usually irrelevant to the user.

### Identity

A user's **identity** is proof of who they are, and, if they are verified,
A user's **identity** is proof of who they are, and, if you have verified them,
proof that you have a secure communication channel with them.

> "Warning: Alice's identity appears to have changed" (when a non-verified
> user resets their recovery key)
> When a non-verified user resets their identity:
> "Warning: Alice's identity has changed."
>
> Longer explanation:
> This can happen if the user lost all their devices and the recovery key, but
> it can also be a sign of someone taking over the account. To be sure, please
> verify their identity by going to their profile.
> "WARNING: Bob's verified identity has changed!" (when a verified user resets
> their recovery key)
> When a verified user resets their identity:
> "WARNING: Bob's verified identity has changed!"
(During login, at the "Confirm it's you" stage):

Expand All @@ -186,7 +191,7 @@ proof that you have a secure communication channel with them.
⚠️ Avoid saying "master key" - this is an implementation detail.

⚠️ Avoid saying "reset their encryption" - the reason that Alice's identity
⚠️ Avoid saying "Alice reset their encryption" - the reason that Alice's identity
changed could be due to attack rather than because they reset their encryption
(plus "encryption" is jargony).

Expand Down Expand Up @@ -266,7 +271,7 @@ easily confused with exporting keys or messages to an external system.

A **recovery key** is a way of regaining access to key storage if the user loses
all their devices. Using key storage, they can preserve their cryptographic
identity (meaning other users don't see "Alice's identity appears to have
identity (meaning other users don't see "Alice's identity has
changed" messages), and also read old messages using the stored message keys.

A **recovery passphrase** is an easier-to-remember way of accessing the recovery
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