What is a Base32 Secret Key?
Demystifying the cryptography behind the long string of letters and numbers used to secure your accounts.
When you set up an authenticator, you often see a string of text like 'JBSWY3DPEHPK3PXP'. This is your Base32 Secret Key. It is a cryptographic seed shared uniquely between you and the service provider (e.g., Google). Base32 uses a specific alphabet (A-Z and 2-7) to ensure the text is easily readable by humans without confusing characters like '0' and 'O'. Our app takes this exact secret, combines it with the current Unix epoch time, and runs it through an HMAC-SHA1 cryptographic hash function to generate your 6-digit code. Because both your browser and the provider's server know the exact time and the exact secret, you both independently calculate the exact same 6-digit number!