I know this probably sounds like a stupid question, but I feel like it should be in the FAQ. I’m sure there’s plenty of new people who are just as confused as I am.
Dunno how Aether actually works, but I can make an educated guess. Aether generates a key (really big random number) upon creation of an account. You can think of that as the password. It also identifies you uniquely, so your key is your account.
Most services identify you through a unique ID and authenticates you through your password, but authentication is done automatically and cryptographically with your key. You can “sign” messages with your key so others know it was you who sent it.
But that also means that if you lose your key, you lose access to your account
Aether generates a key (really big random number) upon creation of an account. You can think of that as the password. It also identifies you uniquely, so your key is your account.
This is correct. Aether keys are local, never shared on the network, so they exist only in your local machine. Back up your keys!