Shufflecake is a Linux storage-encryption system designed around plausible deniability. It can create multiple hidden volumes on a single device while making it difficult to determine how many volumes exist without knowing their passwords.
Each volume represents a different secrecy level. Revealing the password for one layer unlocks that volume and all less-sensitive layers below it while leaving higher layers undisclosed. This provides a hierarchy of decoy and secret storage for threat models involving coercion.
This is free and open source software.
Key Features
- Supports up to 15 ordered hidden volumes on a single storage device.
- Each volume has its own password and independent encryption key.
- Unlocking one volume automatically unlocks all less-sensitive volumes below it in the hierarchy.
- The number of actual volumes is intended to remain hidden from an observer who does not possess all passwords.
- Encrypted headers, position maps and unused regions are designed to appear indistinguishable from random data.
- Data is stored in encrypted slices distributed through the underlying device rather than conventional visible partitions.
- Hidden volumes appear to Linux as normal virtual block devices and can use the filesystem of the user’s choice.
- Several unlocked volumes can be formatted, mounted and used concurrently.
- Supports physical disks, USB devices, partitions and file-backed loop devices.
- Volumes are overcommitted so their apparent sizes do not reveal how storage has actually been divided between hidden layers.
- Designed to use little storage for encryption metadata.
- Provides crash-consistent operation so an interrupted write should not leave the encryption structure unusable.
- Includes a Linux kernel module, command-line management utility and supporting userspace library.
- The project remains experimental and upstream explicitly advises against relying on it for important secrets.
Website: codeberg.org/shufflecake/shufflecake-c
Support:
Developer: Benjamin Voisin, Elia Anzuoni, Nagravision Sàrl, Tommaso Gagliardoni
License: GNU General Public License v2.0
Shufflecake is written in C. Learn C with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Related Software
| 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 |
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