When something does not work

The code never arrived

• Check the country code and the digits shown under the number.
• Some numbers cannot receive texts: a landline, a number that lives only in another app, a number a carrier is filtering. Choose Phone call instead and the code is read aloud.
• The code can arrive on any device that has the number. It does not have to be this phone.
• Codes expire in ten minutes; ask for a new one.

A request stays at Waiting for them

You accepted, and the other phone has not been reachable since. Pairing finishes when both phones are next reachable — nearby, or both on the relay. You can leave the screen; it is not stuck. Cancel it if you no longer want it.

Safety numbers do not match

Compare them in person. If they differ, do not send anything sensitive: one side's key has changed, or something sits between you. Pair again by QR code, in person.

Invitation left, and nothing happens

Reaching someone at a number leaves a request in a slot only that number's owner can collect. Nothing tells you whether anyone will. If they have not verified that number in Channel, they will never see it — try another value, or pair in person.

The same person twice

If a request arrives from a number you already have, accepting it attaches the key to the existing contact rather than making a second one. A second key for the same name that you did not expect is worth a question.

I forgot my app PIN

There is no way in. The PIN is never stored, so nobody — not us — can reset it. Delete and reinstall Channel, then restore from a backup if you made one.

The banner is the wrong colour, the keyboard covers a field

Tell us. Include the phone model and what you were doing; leave out anything you would not want in an email.

English is the reference text; any translation is a convenience. Help is stored on this phone and never contacts anyone.