How do I send a digital scratch card on WhatsApp?

Pick an image, write your message, tap Create link. You get a short link to send on WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, SMS or email. They open it in a browser and scratch it off with a finger — no app, no sign-up.

Yes. Making, sending and opening a scratch card is free and needs no account.

Can you read what is on my scratch card?

No, and that is architecture rather than a promise. Your browser encrypts the image, message and event with AES-GCM before anything is uploaded. The key lives after the # in the link, and browsers never transmit that part of a URL. The server holds bytes it cannot open.

Can the recipient peek before the unlock time?

Not if you set one. The server refuses to hand the encrypted data over before that moment. Changing the device clock does nothing, because the card is not on the device.

How long does a scratch card stay available?

Between 7 and 365 days — your choice. Then it deletes itself. After it is first opened it stays reachable for another 14 days.

Can I hide a voucher code?

Yes. Put it in the message or photograph it. Because encryption happens before upload, the code never sits readable on someone else's server.

Can I see whether my scratch card has been opened?

Yes. Every card comes with a five-character code that tells you whether it has been scratched, when it was first opened, and how many times.

Can I change a card after sending it?

Yes. With the five-character code you can change the image, text, event and time lock after sending. The link stays the same, so there is nothing to resend. The code also resets the card so it counts as unscratched again, or deletes it outright.

Does the recipient need to install anything?

No. Any browser will do — phone, tablet or computer.

What if scratching does not work?

After twenty seconds a button appears that reveals everything. Nobody should be locked out of their own present by a touchscreen.

A ticket for you

Send a digital scratch card.

A digital scratch card you make in two minutes and send on WhatsApp. Under the foil: a photo, something you actually wrote, and — if you like — an event that lands in their calendar with one tap.

Make a scratch card How it works

Free · no sign-up · nothing to install

How it works

Step 01
Pick an image

A photo from your phone. It is resized in the browser before it goes anywhere at all.
Step 02
Write the message

Headline, name, a few personal lines. Optionally an event, and a date before which the card will not open.
Step 03
Send the link

One tap, one short link. Into the chat it goes. They scratch it off with a finger.

What can hide under the foil

A photo — the concert ticket, the dog at the shelter, the hotel room, the two of you ten years ago.
A personal message that only appears once the foil is gone.
An event they add to Apple Calendar or Google Calendar with one tap.
A voucher code — photographed or typed out.
A time lock: the card will not open a minute before their birthday.

We cannot read your gift

That is architecture, not a promise. Your browser encrypts the image, message and event with AES-GCM before anything is uploaded. The key ends up after the # in the link — and browsers never send that part of an address to a server. It cannot land in an access log or a backup, even by accident.

What the server holds is a handful of meaningless bytes. It knows when it is allowed to hand them over, and nothing else. Which is exactly why the time lock is real: it is not the phone's clock that decides, it is a server that simply will not release the data yet.

And if you would rather upload nothing at all: there is an offline link with the whole gift inside it. Longer, but it never touches a server.

The code that stays with you

Every card comes with a five-character code. With it you can check whether it has been scratched — when, and how many times. You can change what is inside after sending, reset the card so it counts as unscratched again, or delete it on the spot.

The link never changes. Whoever already has the card in their chat notices nothing about a correction except what it now says. Wrong date? Fix it, instead of sending a second link after the first.

We cannot reissue the code and cannot look it up — we only keep a checksum of it. Write it down.

The preview is part of the tease

What shows up under the link in WhatsApp, before anyone scratches, is yours to choose: birthday, Christmas, wedding, new baby, love, invitation, thank you or voucher — each with its own preview in the printed-ticket style. Or upload your own.

Said plainly: the occasion and a custom preview image are the only things that are not encrypted. They cannot be — the preview is built by a crawler that holds no key. So put anything in that preview except the surprise.

What people use it for

Birthdays — instead of “Happy birthday 🎉” at 7:12 in the morning, something you have to open.
Concert or travel tickets — the surprise stays a surprise until the foil comes off.
Invitations — the event rides along; one tap and it is in the calendar.
Christmas — time-locked to the 24th at six in the evening.
Engagements, baby news, moving away — anything too good for a voice note.

Frequently asked

How do I send a digital scratch card on WhatsApp?: Pick an image, write your message, tap “Create link”. You get a short link to send on WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, SMS or email. They open it in a browser and scratch it off with a finger — no app, no sign-up.
Is it free?: Yes. Making, sending and opening a card is free and needs no account.
Can you read what is on my scratch card?: No. Encryption happens in your browser, the key sits after the # in the link and is never transmitted. We hold bytes we cannot open.
Can the recipient peek before the unlock time?: Not if you set one. The server refuses to release the data before then, and changing the device clock does nothing because the card is not on the device.
How long does a scratch card stay available?: Between 7 and 365 days, your choice. Then it deletes itself. After the first open it stays reachable for another 14 days.
Can I hide a voucher code?: Yes. It is encrypted before it leaves the device and never sits readable with us.
Can I see whether my scratch card has been opened?: Yes. Every card comes with a five-character code that tells you whether it has been scratched, when it was first opened, and how many times.
Can I change a card after sending it?: Yes, with the code — image, text, event and time lock can all be changed afterwards. The link stays the same, so there is nothing to resend. You can also reset the card, which makes it count as unscratched again, or delete it outright.
Does the recipient need to install anything?: No, a browser is enough. Phone, tablet or computer.
What if scratching does not work?: After twenty seconds a button appears that reveals everything. Nobody should be locked out of their own present by a touchscreen.

Make one now

Two minutes. One photo is enough.

Make a scratch card