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Contacts: Storage, Backup, and Export

This document explains how contacts (address book entries) are stored today, what backup coverage they have, and what's being considered for future export/import support.

Current Storage Behaviour

Contacts are local-only. Each contact is a simple record:

interface Contact {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  publicKey: string;
}

They are persisted on-device using AsyncStorage (unencrypted), under the key @pocketpay_contacts. See the Storage Guide for why contacts live in AsyncStorage rather than SecureStore — a contact's public key is, by design, not sensitive in the same way a secret key or mnemonic is.

There is currently no server, cloud, or account-based sync. Contacts saved on one device are not available on any other device, and there is no PocketPay account tying them together.

Backup Limitations

  • No cloud backup exists for contacts. This mirrors the wallet's secret key, which also has no cloud backup (see the Security Guide).
  • Uninstalling the app deletes AsyncStorage, which deletes the contact list along with it. There is currently no confirmation step or warning before this happens.
  • There is no manual export option yet (no "export to file" or "share" action on the Contacts screen), so there is no way to save a copy of your contacts outside the app today.
  • Restoring a wallet from a secret key does not restore contacts. Contacts are tied to the device/install, not to the wallet's keys, so reinstalling the app or importing a wallet on a new device starts with an empty contact list.

Future Export / Import Considerations

No export/import feature is implemented yet. If added in the future, the following approaches are worth considering:

  • JSON export/import: dump the Contact[] array to a local file (e.g. via expo-file-system + a native share sheet) and allow re-importing that same file on another device.
  • QR-code based transfer: encode a single contact (or a small batch) as a QR code so it can be shared without files or network access, consistent with how addresses are already shared elsewhere in the app.
  • Merge strategy on import: decide how to handle duplicates (matched by publicKey, see findContactByPublicKey in src/store/appStore.ts) — e.g. skip, overwrite, or prompt per conflict.
  • Optional encryption for exported files: since exported contacts could reveal a user's transaction relationships, an exported file should probably not be stored or shared in plaintext by default.

None of the above is implemented. This section only records ideas for future work; contributions or proposals are welcome via an issue or PR.

Summary

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