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Discussion => Security => Topic started by: CleanWhiteBoard on December 24, 2012, 07:53 am

Title: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: CleanWhiteBoard on December 24, 2012, 07:53 am
Hi,

Its probably been answered somewhere but i have spent hours researching and searching and cant find the answer.

Ok first off im using Version: GnuPG v2.0.17 (MingW32)
now i can encrypt a msg and it changes the file type from .txt to .txt.gpg and i cant figure out how to open the file and get the actual text to send in a msg. Ive tried opening it as a txt file but it doesn't work.

Any help is greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: Hungry ghost on December 24, 2012, 09:26 am
If you are using the command line you need to add -a to each command so it encrypts the ASCII text within the file rather than encrypting it as data. The .gpg suffix means its treating the files as data.

So

gpg -e -r "recipient" msg.asc


will encrypt the file msg.asc as data giving a file called msg.asc.gpg

But

gpg -e -a -r "recipient" msg.asc

will encrypt the text within msg.asc and put it in file msg.asc.asc

-a means use ASCII armour

You can use .txt files just the same. It works just the same way. I've not tried it but I presume

gpg -e -a -r "recipient" msg.txt

would encrypt the contents of msg.txt to "recipient"s public key and put in in a file called msg.txt.asc


Decrypting is the same

gpg -d -a msg.txt.  OR   msg.asc

If you only have one private key ( your own) you don't need to specify.

Hope this answers your question; if I've misunderstood I'm sure someone else can help
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: Hungry ghost on December 24, 2012, 09:29 am
Or if you are using a GUI version just make sure it is set to "use ASCII Armour" I think
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: Nightcrawler on December 24, 2012, 09:38 am
Hi,

Its probably been answered somewhere but i have spent hours researching and searching and cant find the answer.

Ok first off im using Version: GnuPG v2.0.17 (MingW32)
now i can encrypt a msg and it changes the file type from .txt to .txt.gpg and i cant figure out how to open the file and get the actual text to send in a msg. Ive tried opening it as a txt file but it doesn't work.

Any help is greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance

Do yourself a favour and ditch GPG4WIN -- it's a piece of shit. Download and use GPG4USB instead. You can get it at the GPG4USB homepage:
http://gpg4usb.cpunk.de/index.html

Once you have unpacked the software, go to the Astor's superb tutorial page: http://32yehzkk7jflf6r2.onion/gpg4usb/ and follow the insructions.

If you do that, you'll be up and running in 10 minutes.

NC
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: Hungry ghost on December 24, 2012, 01:59 pm
Gpg4usb is definitely better as it is a) much more user friendly than GPA(the simplest bit of GPG4WIN) and b) portable so you can have it with Tor browser bundle on a trucrypt hidden volume on a thumb drive. Just make sure you follow the instructions to increase your key size as the GPG4USB default is no longer considered secure.

If you make a portable version of trucrypt on your thumb drive you have a completely self contained set up. If you were ever caught with it you just say you found it in the street but it seems to be encrypted....

This is what I use. It's probably not as secure as a live USB of liberte or TAILS but I think it does for a small occasional buyer such as myself.
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: astor on December 24, 2012, 02:18 pm
Increasing the key size to 4096 bits is one of the bolded *Important* points in the tut linked above. :)
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: CleanWhiteBoard on December 24, 2012, 02:20 pm
Hi,

Its probably been answered somewhere but i have spent hours researching and searching and cant find the answer.

Ok first off im using Version: GnuPG v2.0.17 (MingW32)
now i can encrypt a msg and it changes the file type from .txt to .txt.gpg and i cant figure out how to open the file and get the actual text to send in a msg. Ive tried opening it as a txt file but it doesn't work.

Any help is greatly appreciated

Thanks in advance

Do yourself a favour and ditch GPG4WIN -- it's a piece of shit. Download and use GPG4USB instead. You can get it at the GPG4USB homepage:
http://gpg4usb.cpunk.de/index.html

Once you have unpacked the software, go to the Astor's superb tutorial page: http://32yehzkk7jflf6r2.onion/gpg4usb/ and follow the insructions.

If you do that, you'll be up and running in 10 minutes.

NC



Yep Cheers, way easier done in 10 thanks heaps :) :) :)
Title: Re: Pgp help :) getting the encrypted msg out
Post by: Hungry ghost on December 24, 2012, 02:41 pm
Yes excellent tutorial Astor. I actually didn't know at the time I set mine up you could increase the key size frI'm within GPG4USB so I created a larger key in GPG4WIN and imported it , but there you go. Astros tutorial  would have saved me a lot of faffing.