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Auto Updates

Your contacts always have your latest information.

How It Works

When you update your contact card, everyone who has your card automatically sees the change. No need to send them the new info — it just appears.

sequenceDiagram
    participant Y as You
    participant R as Relay
    participant C1 as Contact 1
    participant C2 as Contact 2

    Y->>Y: Change phone number

    Y->>R: Send encrypted update
    R->>R: Store for offline contacts

    R->>C1: Deliver when online
    C1->>C1: Decrypt, update your card

    Note over C2: Offline

    C2->>R: Come online
    R->>C2: Deliver pending update
    C2->>C2: Decrypt, update your card

    Note over C1,C2: Both see your new number

What Updates

When you change your contact card:

Action What Happens
Add a field Contacts who can see it get notified
Edit a field Contacts see the new value
Remove a field Contacts see it disappear
Change visibility Field appears/disappears for that contact

Update Timing

When Online

  • Updates deliver within seconds
  • Contacts see changes when they open the app
  • Real-time sync when both are active

When Offline

  • Updates queue on the relay server
  • Delivered when the contact comes online
  • Messages kept for up to 30 days

Manual Refresh

Contacts can always:

  • Pull to refresh their contact list
  • Go to Settings > Sync Now

Privacy of Updates

Updates are end-to-end encrypted:

  • The relay server cannot read update content
  • Each contact receives updates encrypted with their unique key
  • Different contacts may see different fields (per visibility settings)

What the Relay Sees

Sees Doesn't See
Encrypted blob Field names
Recipient ID Field values
Timestamp Who you are
Message size (padded) What changed

Visibility and Updates

Updates respect your visibility settings:

  • If you hide a field from someone, they don't receive updates for it
  • If you show a field to someone, they start receiving updates
  • Changes are per-contact, not global

Example

You change your phone number:

Contact Visibility What They See
Family Phone visible New number
Work Phone hidden Nothing
Friend Phone visible New number

Forward Secrecy

Each update uses a unique encryption key:

  • Keys are derived via Double Ratchet
  • Even if one key is compromised, other updates stay secure
  • Past messages can't be decrypted with current keys

Troubleshooting

Contact Doesn't See My Update

  1. Check visibility — Is the field visible to them?
  2. Check your connection — Are you online?
  3. Wait a moment — Updates may take a few seconds
  4. Ask them to refresh — Pull to refresh or manual sync

Updates Seem Slow

  1. Check both connections — You and the contact need internet
  2. Check relay status — Rare server issues may delay delivery
  3. Try manual sync — Settings > Sync Now

Update Stuck

If an update seems stuck:

  1. Close and reopen the app
  2. Check internet connectivity
  3. Try editing and saving the field again