Floater
Frequently Asked Questions
Short answers to the things people ask most about accounts, codes, messages, follows, and disappearing DMs.
What do I need to sign up?
Only a username and a password. Floater never asks for an email address or phone number.
Because there is no email on file, there is no email password reset — keep your password somewhere safe.
What is the 4-digit passcode for encrypted messages?
Your direct messages are end-to-end encrypted. Your private key is wrapped with a 4-digit passcode and only unwrapped in your browser's memory while you are signed in.
Floater never stores that passcode. If you forget it, older encrypted messages cannot be read again.
What is the 4-digit PIN used at sign-out and sign-in?
When you sign out you can choose to delete all your chats. If you do, they can be stashed behind a 4-digit PIN instead of being lost.
Enter that same PIN the next time you log in and your chats are restored. The PIN is stored hashed, and entering it correctly also updates your last-login time.
Are my messages stored on the server?
Direct messages are stored as ciphertext — the server holds the encrypted blob, not readable text. Delivery details like who sent what and when are stored unencrypted so the app can order and deliver threads.
Group posts and comments are not encrypted; anyone in the group can read them.
Can I edit or delete messages?
Yes. You can edit a message you sent (it is re-encrypted and marked as edited) or delete it, which removes it and any attachment for both people in the thread.
How do disappearing DMs work?
Above the composer you can pick a self-destruct timer, from 30 seconds up to 1 month, or turn it off. Timed messages show a live countdown in the chat.
The sender can add or remove time from a running countdown using the − and + buttons on the bubble. When the timer reaches zero the message and any attachment are deleted.
How do follows work?
Follows are requests. When you follow someone their status shows as “Requested” until they approve it from their profile page.
Approved follows count toward followers; declined requests simply disappear.
What happens when I block someone?
Blocking stops messages between you and that person in both directions. Blocked conversations are hidden from your inbox but can be revealed with the “Show blocked conversations” toggle, and they come back to normal if you unblock.
Can admins read my messages?
Admins can see accounts, activity, and message metadata, and can send pop-up notices. They cannot read the contents of end-to-end encrypted DMs — those show as locked. Unencrypted group posts are visible.
Do I keep getting messages while my chats are stashed?
Yes. New messages arrive normally, and restoring stashed chats merges them back in by timestamp, so nothing is lost.