Subter

Documentation

Getting started

Subter has two halves that work together: an account on the web and your keys in the app. Knowing which does what is the whole mental model.

The two halves

Your account (here, on the web)

Sign in, pick your handle, manage your subscription, and connect accounts (GitHub, Google, X, email). This is the billing and identity-name side.

Your keys (in the app)

The Subter app generates and holds your keys on your device, proves control of them, and signs and publishes your identity. Subter never sees your private keys.

The important consequence: your account is not your keys. Losing account access is recoverable (email/password/social). Losing your keys is not — see Keys & recovery.

The lifecycle

  1. Create your account and choose a handle — your reserved name, even before you subscribe.
  2. Subscribe. Publishing is paid; resolving is free for everyone. An active subscription unlocks enrolling and publishing.
  3. Enroll your key in the app — it proves control of your keys and binds them to your fingerprint (nothing secret leaves your device).
  4. Add verified claims — connected accounts and domains. Each is optional and individually chosen.
  5. Publish. Your signed identity goes live at your fingerprint — resolvable and verifiable by anyone, offline.
  6. Share & verify. Hand out your handle or fingerprint; contacts verify you out of band.

What’s live, and what’s coming

Live

Accounts and handles, subscriptions, key enrollment, publishing, free resolve, connected-account claims, and domain verification.

Coming

Key rotation (recover from a compromised key), and more verifiers — Bluesky, Nostr, and crypto wallets.

The app’s directory features are rolling out alongside this service; some steps above land in the app as that work ships.

Next: Keys & recovery · Verifying your identity · back to Help.