Frequently asked
questions

EM uses AES-256-GCM encryption - the same standard used by banks and security professionals worldwide. When you create an account, a unique encryption key is generated for you and wrapped with your password using PBKDF2, a key-strengthening process designed to resist brute-force attacks.

Your messages are encrypted in your browser before being saved anywhere. Only someone with your password can derive the key needed to decrypt your memories. EM never stores your password in a readable form, and never holds your raw key.

Yes, and you don't have to take our word for it. On a computer, you can watch exactly what your browser sends to EM while a chat uploads:

1. Open EM in Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a computer and sign in.
2. Open the developer tools: press F12, or right-click the page and choose Inspect. Then open the Network tab.
3. Upload a chat from the Add page.
4. Type "messages" into the Network tab's filter box and click one of the requests that appears.
5. Open its Payload tab (called Request in Firefox).

Next to "encrypted_content" you'll see a long string of random-looking letters and numbers for every message, never your words. The same goes for who sent each one. What you will see as plain numbers are dates and times, because EM uses them to find today's memories without unlocking anything. Our Privacy Policy lists every detail stored that way.

Yes. EM groups a conversation by its name, so if two or three exports come in under the same name, they become one chat rather than several. All the messages are kept and nothing already saved is replaced, so you end up with the whole history of that person in one place, however many numbers it was spread across.

The name comes from the file name, not from inside the chat. So export each conversation, then rename the files so they match exactly before you upload them - for example three files all called 'WhatsApp Chat with Emma.txt' - and upload them one at a time.

That last part matters, because your phone will usually add a number to the second download and call it 'WhatsApp Chat with Emma (1).txt'. EM would read that as a different person and start a separate chat. If it spots one, it will say so before you import, so you can rename the file and try again.

No. Exporting works whatever your backup settings, as long as the chat is still on your phone. It makes a fresh .txt or .zip file each time, depending on your phone. A short chat takes seconds, and a long one with media can take a few minutes.

If you've recently switched phones, check whether your chats transferred across before exporting - EM can only work with what WhatsApp still has.

Your recovery phrase is a 24-character code generated and shown to you once when you create your account. It is a backup of your encryption key - the only way to recover your data if you ever forget your password.

Write it down and keep it somewhere safe - a notebook, a secure notes app, or anywhere only you can access. EM never stores your recovery phrase in a readable form, so if you lose it, it cannot be retrieved.

Tap 'Forgot password?' on the sign-in page, enter your email address, and we'll email you a code. Enter the code, then your recovery phrase and a new password, and your memories unlock again.

Your recovery phrase is used to unlock your encryption key and lock it again under your new password. Without it, a password reset is not possible.

If you forget your password and have also lost your recovery phrase, your memories cannot be recovered - not by you, and not by EM. This is intentional: it means no one can ever access your data without both your password and your phrase.

Please treat your recovery phrase the way you would treat a house key. Store it somewhere safe the moment you see it.

If you lost your recovery phrase, but have your password, you can sign in and generate a new recovery phrase in your account section (You page).

When you export the chat from WhatsApp, choose With media instead of Without media. That is the only version of the file that contains the audio.

Then, when you upload it to EM, tick 'Include voice messages' before you import. That box is what tells EM to keep the audio, and it is part of EM Premium.

The file will be a lot bigger, and the import will take longer, because the audio is being encrypted and uploaded one note at a time. EM shows you how far along it is.

It helps to keep the page open while it runs. EM asks your phone to keep the screen awake, but no website can keep working once you switch to another app.

If it does get interrupted, run it again. EM picks up where it left off instead of starting over.

If you are on an iPhone running iOS 16.3 or earlier, check the small switch on the side of the phone. When it is set to silent it can mute playback in the browser, with no warning on screen. Newer versions of iOS handle this for you.

It is also worth checking your volume, and whether the phone is connected to headphones or a speaker you have forgotten about.

If it still won't play, use 'Report an issue' on your You page and EM will look into it.