transcrypt is a Bash utility that configures transparent encryption for selected files inside a Git repository.
It uses Git clean and smudge filters so protected files are encrypted when committed and decrypted again in an authorised working copy. Other contributors can still work with unencrypted parts of the repository without knowing the encryption password, which makes it useful for selectively protecting credentials, keys and configuration data rather than encrypting an entire repository. The tool relies on OpenSSL for its symmetric cryptography instead of implementing its own cipher primitives. Upstream also documents an important limitation: its default CBC-based encryption does not provide authenticated encryption, so malicious ciphertext modification is possible in some circumstances.
This is free and open source software.
Key Features
- Configure selected files or patterns for transparent encryption through .gitattributes.
- Generate a different deterministic salt for each encrypted file.
- Keep the same encrypted representation when an unchanged file is recommitted.
- Create multiple encryption contexts with separate passwords and ciphers.
- Rekey protected files when credentials or cipher choices need to change.
- Export and import repository encryption credentials using GnuPG.
- List all files currently covered by encryption rules.
- Inspect the raw encrypted form of a tracked file before pushing it.
- Set up additional clones with the same encryption credentials.
- Flush locally cached credentials and return protected files to encrypted form.
- Perform safety checks designed to avoid clobbering existing Git configuration.
- Add a git ls-crypt alias for quickly inspecting encrypted files.
- Provide Bash and Zsh command completion scripts.
- Require only Bash, Git, OpenSSL and a small set of common command-line utilities for normal use.
Website: github.com/elasticdog/transcrypt
Support:
Developer: James Murty and Aaron Bull Schaefer
License: MIT License
transcrypt is written in Bash.
Related Software
| 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 |
| Picocrypt | Very small (hence Pico), very simple, yet very secure encryption tool |
| fscrypt | Go tool for managing Linux filesystem encryption |
| 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 |
| eddy | Simple and fast CLI file encryption |
| Xecrets Cli | AxCrypt compatible encryption tool |
| nacrypt | Simple and easy-to-use file encryption utility |
| v02enc | Symmetric encryption for multiple recipients |
| rsecure | AES-GCM file encryption and decryption tool |
| PurrCrypt | Fur-ociously secure encryption tool |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
 Explore our comprehensive directory of recommended free and open source software. Our carefully curated collection spans every major software category.This directory is part of our ongoing series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. It features hundreds of detailed reviews, along with open source alternatives to proprietary solutions from major corporations such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. You’ll also find interesting projects to try, hardware coverage, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Discovered a useful open source Linux program that we haven’t covered yet? Let us know by completing this form. |
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