PIN, Password & Panic

Three different locks do three different jobs. Keeping them straight is the key to using Oten Drive safely.

Device PIN

• Unlocks the app and your Drive on this device.

• A local gate only — it is not used to encrypt anything, is never synced, and is never sent to the server.

• Forgetting it costs you nothing but a re-setup on that device; your data is safe as long as you hold your recovery keys.

Vault password

• Opens a vault (and selects which Shadow Layer you enter).

• Part of the cryptography — it, combined with the vault's keys, is what actually unlocks the files.

• If you forget it, you recover with that vault's Vault Recovery Key. Lose both and that vault is unrecoverable.

Panic

• A one-touch emergency action for high-pressure moments.

• Instantly locks all vaults and hides the app; depending on your settings it can also wipe local caches or drop to a decoy-only state, and optionally sign you out.

• Works from local state first, so it functions even offline. A quieter variant, Ghost Exit, simply hides the app and quits.

Why it matters: the PIN protects the device, the password protects the files, and Panic protects you in the moment. Configure Panic before you need it — see Configure & trigger Panic.