User A and User B are colleagues working on a sensitive project. They need to share confidential documents securely but want to use WhatsApp for its convenience. To protect their communication from prying eyes, they decide to use TimeSeed, a privacy-first encryption tool. A while ago, they shared a TimeSeed string in person, and during a recent phone call, they agreed to use the pepper password Thunderstorm for added security.
User A wants to send a PDF document to User B over WhatsApp, but they’re concerned about interception or unauthorized access. Using TimeSeed, they can encrypt the document with a shared TimeSeed string and the pepper password Thunderstorm, ensuring only User B can decrypt it.
User A downloads the open-source TimeSeed.io HTML file from TimeSeed.io, verifies its integrity, and opens it on an air-gapped laptop for maximum security. They input the pre-shared 50-character TimeSeed string:
TrZmGsRJevrfT4NRKeDQAdJEAxyarE8gleIEmQSqrBgnxsXv38
User A also enters the pepper password Thunderstorm and selects July 2nd, 2025, as the key derivation date (agreed upon with User B during their phone call). TimeSeed’s AES-GCM algorithm generates a 64-character encryption key for 6 months (longer term):
adc0b33ffb4c2d7e2aa84da9ff8a885a53ff952b3e2c2e1a1742ec090f32c02e
This longer term password key, unique to the TimeSeed, pepper, and date, ensures the document is secure, as the secrets were never shared online.
User A, still at the "timeseed" section, selects the longer term password as the one to use in "Lockit" by clicking the "use in lockit". User A uploads the .PDF document with the info into TimeSeed’s encryption field, this can be found under the 'Encode or Decode' section text, and user A clicks on "input as File" to switch to file mode, from text mode. This user uses the derived key. TimeSeed encrypts the file, producing a .tsx file and a ciphertext string for sharing:
The File can be found here (it's a test .TSX (the encryped PDF) file for "Lorum Ipsum Network" for testing purposes). Click the "download" icon in the upper right of the interface to download the file. If you don't trust the file upload it first to virustotal.com to be sure there's no virus in it (it's just an encrypted .pdf)
The encryption uses Deterministic Key Derivation (AES, salting, time-salting, plus a pepper password), ensuring that even if the same document is encrypted multiple times, the ciphertext is unique due to the initialization vector (IV).
User A sends the .tsx file to User B via WhatsApp, along with a note: “Encrypted with TimeSeed, use our pepper password July 2, 2025.” The message is sent securely, with WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption providing an additional layer of protection for the transmission.
User B receives the message and downloads the TimeSeed.io HTML file, opening it on their own air-gapped device. They input the same TimeSeed string, the pepper password Thunderstorm, and the date July 1, 2025, to derive the same 64-character key:
adc0b33ffb4c2d7e2aa84da9ff8a885a53ff952b3e2c2e1a1742ec090f32c02e
User B uploads the .tsx file or pastes the ciphertext into TimeSeed’s decryption field. The tool decrypts the file, revealing the original PDF document. TimeSeed’s offline design ensures no digital footprint is left behind.
User A and User B continue sharing documents using the same TimeSeed and pepper password, deriving daily keys for each new exchange. For example, on July 2, 2025, they use a new key:
7b2e9d1f4a6c8h325608f7ade35g91e24h3i852cbf6d1247ge9f4cb2e1ah37c1
For highly sensitive documents, they agree to use a 6-month key (e.g., July 1–December 31, 2025) with the same pepper, ensuring long-term security.
TimeSeed enables User A and User B to share sensitive documents securely over WhatsApp, protecting their project from unauthorized access. The system’s reliance on shared secrets and offline operation ensures their communication remains private, even on a widely used platform. They can send encrypted files via any medium—WhatsApp, email, or others—making TimeSeed versatile for their needs.
TimeSeed empowers secure communication for everyday needs, proving that simple, privacy-first cryptography can protect sensitive information.