diff --git a/rust/src/api/identity.rs b/rust/src/api/identity.rs
index eef170c9..b538db4f 100644
--- a/rust/src/api/identity.rs
+++ b/rust/src/api/identity.rs
@@ -167,7 +167,9 @@ pub async fn load_identity_from_mnemonic(
     privacy_mode: bool,
     created_at: Option<i64>,
 ) -> Result<IdentityInfo> {
-    key_ops::validate_mnemonic(&words)?;
+    // Deriving is the validation: it parses the phrase and fails on a bad word
+    // or checksum with the same `invalid mnemonic` error the explicit check
+    // used to produce.
     let keys = key_ops::derive_master_key(&words)?;
     let public_key = keys.public_key().to_hex();
 
diff --git a/rust/src/crypto/keys.rs b/rust/src/crypto/keys.rs
index 8ea10432..bf31bfd5 100644
--- a/rust/src/crypto/keys.rs
+++ b/rust/src/crypto/keys.rs
@@ -22,15 +22,12 @@ pub fn generate_mnemonic() -> Result<Vec<String>> {
     Ok(mnemonic.words().map(|w| w.to_string()).collect())
 }
 
-/// Parse and validate a mnemonic from a word list.
-/// Accepts 12 or 24 words. Returns error on invalid words or checksum.
-pub fn validate_mnemonic(words: &[String]) -> Result<()> {
-    let phrase = words.join(" ");
-    Mnemonic::parse(&phrase).map_err(|e| anyhow!("invalid mnemonic: {e}"))?;
-    Ok(())
-}
-
 /// Derive the identity (`N=0`) Nostr `Keys` from a mnemonic.
+///
+/// **This is also the validation.** Deriving parses the phrase, so a word list
+/// with a bad word or a bad checksum fails here with `invalid mnemonic: …`.
+/// There is no separate validate-then-derive pair: two parses of the same
+/// phrase is two places for "what counts as a valid mnemonic" to be answered.
 pub fn derive_master_key(mnemonic_words: &[String]) -> Result<Keys> {
     derive_at_index(mnemonic_words, 0)
 }
@@ -80,6 +77,38 @@ mod tests {
         assert_eq!(k1.public_key(), k2.public_key());
     }
 
+    /// The import path relies on derivation to reject a bad phrase — it no
+    /// longer validates separately first. If that ever stops being true, a
+    /// typo'd word becomes some other user's key rather than an error.
+    #[test]
+    fn deriving_refuses_a_phrase_that_is_not_a_mnemonic() {
+        // Arrange — real BIP-39 words, wrong checksum; then a word that is not
+        // in the list at all. The dialog that feeds this only checks the shape
+        // (12 or 24 alphabetic words), so both reach Rust.
+        let bad_checksum: Vec<String> = "abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon"
+            .split(' ')
+            .map(str::to_string)
+            .collect();
+        let not_a_word: Vec<String> = "mostro abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon abandon about"
+            .split(' ')
+            .map(str::to_string)
+            .collect();
+
+        // Act / Assert
+        for words in [&bad_checksum, &not_a_word] {
+            let err = derive_master_key(words).unwrap_err();
+            assert!(
+                err.to_string().contains("invalid mnemonic"),
+                "got {err}"
+            );
+            assert!(derive_trade_key(words, 1).is_err());
+        }
+
+        // And an empty list is not a mnemonic either — an nsec-imported
+        // identity stores no words.
+        assert!(derive_master_key(&[]).is_err());
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn trade_key_differs_from_identity_key() {
         let words = generate_mnemonic().unwrap();