MANILA, Philippines – If you’re a user of the Signal secure messaging application and are planning to use the app on a new device, you’re in luck. Signal has a new system in place that will let you quickly transfer necessary information from your old device to your new one.

Signal’s new system lets users restore their supporting data – user profile, settings, and contacts – on a new installation of Signal. They’re keeping the process secure with a PIN system that lets users set up an alphanumeric combination to serve as a password for the account. The company said it was doing this “to support future functionality while still protecting user privacy.”

In a support post on their site, Signal noted “users will be asked to enter this PIN the next time you register your phone number with Signal.”

While Signal currently requires a phone number for use, the PINs feature may be a way to decouple phone numbers as an idenitier on the service, aside from helping prepare other new features for the app.

Once set up, Signal will request that you enter the pin after 12 hours, 1 day, 3 days, 7 days, and 14 days. While password managers can be used to save the PIN, Signal will not support copy-pasting the PIN from a password manager onto its forms. – Rappler.com