FAQ · Valt - Making Passwords Painless

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Valt Visual Password Manager?

Valt Visual Password Manager is an iPhone app that provides a new approach to password management. It leverages your visual memory to keep your sensitive passwords secure. The images you learn via specific prompts on each image translate into a master password, which is used to unlock your Valt where all of your passwords are stored.

How do I use it?

Step 1. Choose your Valt strength. Choose between minimum, standard and high.

Step 2. Valt Visual Password Manager will display a series of images when first using the app. Remember specific details in these images by following the prompts.

Step 3. Unlock your Valt by selecting the images you’ve just remembered during Step 2.

Step 4. Create new password entries by adding a title, username and password.

That’s it, when you return to the app later; you select the images you’ve remembered to display your password entries.

How many images do I have to remember?

It depends on your desired strength of your Valt. Users have the option of selecting between three levels: minimum (9 images), standard (12 images) and high (15 images). The more images you choose to remember, the higher the strength of your Valt.

I can’t remember so many images!

Yes, you can. In fact, there are decades of academic research (including our own) that say you can easily recall hundreds of images, even without seeing them for a month.

What if I forget my images?

Forgetting your images is extremely unlikely, but it is possible if you don’t use the app for a very long period of time. Unfortunately, there is currently no process for recovering password entries if all the images cannot be selected. We recommend refreshing your memory at least twice a week to prevent this from happening. Our tag-based image training process is designed so that if you do forget an image, remembering the tags associated with that image should be enough to remind you.

In future versions, Valt Visual Password Manager will also be able to correct some errors. With error correction, the correct passwords will still be revealed as long as you only forget one or two images.

Where do these images come from?

We hand curated a set of 200 memorable images from the public domain. We will keep adding new images over time. At the moment, you can’t choose which images are yours or use your own images, but we’re considering these features for future versions.

Does Valt Visual Password Manager store my passwords on a server?

No. Valt Visual Password Manager only stores the image set, and how the images map to characters. The image set does not include any information about which images were assigned to you. The maps determine how each selection of images translates into a password.

Can someone get my passwords if they have my phone?

No. Even if someone has your device, they would have to correctly select all your images to display your passwords. Selecting your images without knowing them ahead of time is equivalent to simply guessing what your password is.

Should I worry about hackers?

No. Your master password isn’t stored on a server; it’s in your memory, as a series of images. A hacker would have to ask you which images are included in your image set to gain access to your Valt.

Does something seem odd or broken?

Tell us about it by sending an email to [email protected]. The app is still in its early stages and all the feedback we receive will help us to improve it.