GnuPG, the GNU Privacy Guard, is a comprehensive suite for encrypting and signing data and communications. Its best-known component is gpg, which implements the OpenPGP protocol and provides public-key and symmetric encryption together with digital signatures.
The suite also supplies key-management services and supporting daemons rather than being limited to a single encryption command. It is widely integrated into mail clients, package-management infrastructure, development tools and automated workflows.
This is free and open source software.
Key Features
- Encrypt and decrypt files, messages and streams using the OpenPGP format.
- Create digital signatures and verify the authenticity and integrity of signed data.
- Supports detached signatures, cleartext signatures and combined signing and encryption workflows.
- Comprehensive public and secret key management, including expiration, revocation and subkeys.
- Supports RSA, DSA, ElGamal, Ed25519, Curve25519 and other elliptic-curve algorithms.
- Modern authenticated encryption is available using OCB where recipient capabilities permit it.
- gpg-agent manages private-key operations and can cache passphrases.
- scdaemon provides support for OpenPGP smartcards and other supported cryptographic hardware.
- dirmngr handles network access for certificate and key retrieval.
- gpgsm provides S/MIME and X.509 certificate support alongside OpenPGP.
- Can use keyservers and Web Key Directory infrastructure to locate public keys.
- Designed for scripting and integration, with machine-readable output and batch operation.
- Supports symmetric encryption when public-key cryptography is not required.
- Includes tools for verifying signatures without exposing secret-key functionality.
Website: www.gnupg.org
Support:
Developer: Werner Koch and numerous developers
License: GNU General Public License v3.0
GnuPG is written in C. Learn C with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Related Software
| Email Encryption Tools | |
|---|---|
| GnuPG | Encrypt and sign data and communication |
| OpenPGP | Authenticating or encrypting data, using public key cryptography |
| Mailvelope | Extension for Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox |
| Enigmail | OpenPGP Email Security for Mozilla Applications |
| LibrePGP | Updated specification of the OpenPGP encryption standard |
| Mymail-Crypt for Gmail | Simple solution to mail encryption; not affiliated with Google |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
| Disk Encryption Tools | |
|---|---|
| VeraCrypt | Strong disk encryption software |
| loop-AES | Encrypt disk partitions, removable media, swap space and other devices |
| dm-crypt | Transparent disk encryption subsystem |
| cryptsetup | Configures encrypted block devices |
| GnuPG | GNU Privacy Guard - implementation of the OpenPGP standard |
| gocryptfs | Encrypted overlay filesystem written in Go |
| Tomb | System for file encryption |
| Shufflecake | Create multiple hidden volumes |
| zuluCrypt | Feature rich solution for hard drive encryption |
| cryptmount | Managing encrypted file systems |
| disk-encryption-tool | Encrypt existing Linux storage without reinstalling the system |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
| CLI File Encryption Tools | |
|---|---|
| SOPS | Editor of encrypted files |
| age | Simple file encryption tool |
| GnuPG | Implementation of the OpenPGP standard |
| Sequoia PGP | Comprehensive OpenPGP implementation |
| horcrux | File splitter with encryption and redundancy |
| rage | Simple encryption tool using the age format |
| Kryptor | Simple, modern, and secure file encryption and signing tool |
| transcrypt | Transparently encrypt sensitive files stored in Git repositories |
| Picocrypt | Very small (hence Pico), very simple, yet very secure encryption tool |
| enc | Designed as a modern, approachable alternative to GnuPG |
| ccrypt | Tool for encrypting and decrypting files and streams |
| Encpipe | Billed as the simplest encryption tool in the world |
| Volaris | Encryption tool designed to prioritize privacy and security |
| sigtool | Sign, verify, encrypt and decrypt files from the command line |
| eddy | Simple and fast CLI file encryption |
| Xecrets Cli | AxCrypt compatible encryption tool |
| nacrypt | Simple and easy-to-use file encryption utility |
| agevault | Encrypt and decrypt directories securely using age |
| v02enc | Symmetric encryption for multiple recipients |
| PurrCrypt | Fur-ociously secure encryption tool |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
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