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Key Handoff

What Key Handoff is

Section titled “What Key Handoff is”

Key Handoff transfers a private key from one of your devices to another without ever writing a plaintext file — no AirDropping key files, no pasting into notes.

How the channel is secured

Section titled “How the channel is secured”
  • The devices find each other over the local network.
  • An encrypted channel is established with X25519 key agreement, HKDF key derivation and ChaCha20-Poly1305 encryption.
  • Both devices display a 6-digit verification code; you confirm they match before the key is sent. This defeats man-in-the-middle attempts on the local network.

When to use it

Section titled “When to use it”
  • Setting up a new device.
  • Moving a biometric-protected key, which never syncs through iCloud Keychain — Key Handoff is the intended way to get it onto a second device.