Paperkey
A command-line tool that extracts OpenPGP secret-key material for printed backup and recovery.
By David Shaw
Alternatives
About Paperkey
Paperkey extracts the secret bytes from an OpenPGP secret key and outputs them in a compact format for archiving. To restore a key, combine that backup with the corresponding public key.
The output can be human-readable hexadecimal or raw data for use with tools such as barcode or QR code generators. Paperkey does not encrypt the backup; it preserves the original key's passphrase protection, if any.
Strengths
- Produces a compact backup of OpenPGP secret-key material
- Can reconstruct a key using its public key
- Supports hexadecimal and raw output
Limitations
- Recovery requires the corresponding public key
Details
- Pricing
- FreeFree and open source under GPL-2.0-or-later.
- License
- GPL-2.0-or-later
- Developer
- David Shaw
- Platforms
- Windows, Linux, Command line
- How it runs
- Downloadable app
- Best suited for
- OpenPGP users making a printed recovery backup of a secret key
- Categories
- Encryption tools
- Last verified
- Added
- Provenance
- Selected from the Homebrew formula