Privacy Deposits

Making a privacy deposit is the first step toward anonymous card creation. This guide walks you through the deposit process, explains what to expect, and emphasizes the critical importance of saving your secret recovery note.

Before You Deposit

Understanding what you're committing to helps you use privacy safely.

What you need:

• Solana wallet with USDC-Dev (on devnet) or USDC (on mainnet)
• Small amount of SOL for transaction fees (~0.01 SOL)
• Secure place to store your recovery note (password manager or paper)
• Understanding that lost notes = lost funds

What you're about to do:

• Send funds to a privacy pool smart contract
• Receive a secret recovery note that's your ONLY way to withdraw
• Wait for other deposits to increase your anonymity
• Use the recovery note later to withdraw and receive your card

Time commitment:

• Deposit: 1-2 minutes
• Waiting (optional): Hours to days for maximum privacy
• Withdrawal: 2-5 minutes when ready

Choosing Your Amount

Privacy deposits only work with fixed amounts.

Available denominations:

• $25: Good for testing privacy flow with small stakes
• $50: Small purchases, experimentation
• $100: Most common denomination, largest anonymity set
• $200: Medium-value cards
• $500: Maximum privacy deposit amount

Why these specific amounts? Fixed amounts create larger anonymity sets. If everyone deposits $100, it's hard to tell who's who. Custom amounts would be easily traceable.

Need a different amount? Make multiple deposits. For example, $150 = one $100 deposit + one $50 deposit. Each deposit gets its own recovery note.

Which amount to choose? Start with $25-$50 to learn the system. Once comfortable, use $100 for the best anonymity sets.

Step-by-Step Deposit Process

Here's exactly what happens when you make a privacy deposit.

Step 1: Enable Privacy Mode

Navigate to the ALIAS card creation page and enable "Private Payment" toggle.

This switches from standard card creation to privacy protocol mode.

You'll see the interface change to show fixed amount options instead of custom amounts.

Step 2: Select Amount

Choose one of the five fixed amounts ($25, $50, $100, $200, $500).

The interface shows how many other deposits exist for that amount—this is your potential anonymity set.

Larger sets (more deposits) mean better privacy.

Step 3: Connect Your Wallet

If not already connected, connect your Solana wallet using the "Connect Wallet" button.

Make sure you have sufficient USDC for the deposit plus ~0.01 SOL for gas fees.

Your wallet address will be used for the deposit but won't be linked to the eventual withdrawal.

Step 4: Generate Secret Note

Click "Deposit to Privacy Pool" and the system generates your secret recovery note locally on your device.

This note never leaves your computer and is never sent to ALIAS servers.

The note contains two pieces of information:

• Secret: Your private key for this deposit
• Nullifier: Prevents double-spending of the same deposit

Step 5: Save Your Recovery Note

CRITICAL STEP: A modal appears showing your secret recovery note.

What it looks like: A long hexadecimal string split into two parts (secret and nullifier).

What you must do:

1. Copy the entire note to your password manager
2. OR write it down on paper and store safely
3. OR download as a text file and encrypt it
4. Verify you saved it correctly
5. DO NOT proceed until note is safely stored

What happens if you lose it: Your deposited funds are gone forever. No recovery is possible.

Step 6: Approve Transaction

After saving your note, approve the deposit transaction in your wallet.

Your wallet will ask you to confirm sending USDC to the privacy pool contract.

Review the amount and recipient address, then approve.

Step 7: Wait for Confirmation

The transaction submits to Solana blockchain.

Confirmation typically takes 1-2 seconds on Solana.

Once confirmed, your deposit is complete and funds are in the privacy pool.

Step 8: Deposit Confirmed

You'll see a confirmation message that your deposit was successful.

Your funds are now mixed in the pool with other users' deposits.

You can withdraw immediately or wait for more deposits to increase anonymity.

What Happens to Your Funds

Understanding where your money goes helps you trust the system.

Immediately after deposit:

• Funds transfer to privacy pool smart contract on Solana
• Contract creates a "commitment" (cryptographic proof of your deposit)
• Commitment is stored on-chain
• Your secret note is the only way to prove you created that commitment

During mixing period:

• Your funds sit in the pool alongside other users' deposits
• More people deposit, increasing the anonymity set
• Nothing happens to your money—it's safely locked in the contract

Security guarantees:

• Smart contract controls the funds, not ALIAS
• Only valid ZK proofs can withdraw funds
• Your secret note is required to generate a valid proof
• Contract has been audited for security

Timing Your Deposit

When you deposit affects your eventual privacy level.

Deposit immediately before withdrawal:

• Smallest anonymity set
• Weakest privacy (timing correlation is easy)
• Fastest overall process
• Good for testing only

Deposit hours before withdrawal:

• Medium anonymity set
• Better privacy with timing separation
• Reasonable for most use cases

Deposit days before withdrawal:

• Largest anonymity set
• Strongest privacy guarantees
• Requires patience and planning
• Best for high-value or sensitive cards

Check pool stats: The interface shows how many deposits exist for each amount. Wait until your amount has 50+ deposits for good privacy.

Viewing Your Deposits

You can see your privacy deposits in your dashboard.

What's shown:

• Amount of deposit
• Date and time deposited
• Whether it's been withdrawn yet
• Commitment hash (public identifier)

What's NOT shown:

• Your secret note (never stored anywhere)
• Which withdrawal corresponds to this deposit
• Recovery note (you must save it yourself)

Multiple deposits: You can have multiple active deposits at once. Each has its own recovery note. Keep them organized.

Common Deposit Issues

Insufficient balance

You need USDC for the deposit AND SOL for gas fees.

Solution: Ensure wallet has deposit amount + 0.01 SOL for fees.

Transaction fails

Network congestion or wallet timeout can cause failures.

Solution: Try again after 30 seconds. Your funds won't be lost if transaction fails.

Didn't save recovery note

If you closed the window without saving the note, funds may be unrecoverable.

Prevention: NEVER click away from the note screen until you've saved it securely.

Wrong network

Privacy pool is on devnet (testnet). Ensure you're connected to devnet, not mainnet.

Solution: Switch network in wallet settings and try again.

Pool not initialized

Rarely, the privacy pool contract may need initialization.

Solution: Contact support. This is a rare deployment issue, not a user error.

Best Practices for Deposits

Security:

• Use a fresh wallet address not linked to your identity
• Fund wallet via privacy-preserving methods
• Don't discuss your deposit publicly or link it to your identity
• Save recovery note immediately—don't delay

Privacy:

• Deposit from one wallet, plan to withdraw to a different wallet
• Wait hours or days before withdrawing
• Don't deposit and withdraw in predictable patterns
• Check anonymity set size before depositing

Organization:

• Label recovery notes with amount and date
• Store notes in password manager for easy retrieval
• Keep backup copy in secure physical location
• Test with small amount ($25) before larger deposits

Timing:

• Deposit during periods of high activity for bigger anonymity sets
• Don't withdraw immediately after depositing
• Check pool stats to see current deposit volume
• Be patient—privacy takes time

Recovery Note Storage Options

Choosing the right storage method for your recovery notes.

Password Manager (recommended):

• Pros: Encrypted, backed up, accessible, searchable
• Cons: Single point of failure if password is compromised
• Best for: Regular users who want convenience and security

Encrypted File:

• Pros: Can be backed up, portable, offline
• Cons: Must manage encryption keys separately
• Best for: Technical users comfortable with encryption

Paper Backup:

• Pros: Offline, immune to hacking, simple
• Cons: Can be lost or damaged, not searchable
• Best for: Long-term storage, backup copy

Hardware Security Module:

• Pros: Maximum security, tamper-resistant
• Cons: Expensive, complex, overkill for most users
• Best for: Large deposits requiring maximum security

What NOT to do:

• Store in plain text file on your computer
• Email to yourself
• Save in browser without encryption
• Share with anyone, even ALIAS support
• Post in screenshots or share publicly

Next Steps

After making your deposit, you're ready to wait and eventually withdraw.

• Understanding Privacy - Learn about zero-knowledge proofs
• Withdrawing Funds - How to get your anonymous card
• How Privacy Works - Deep dive into privacy mechanics
• Privacy Protocol Overview - High-level introduction