Charly's Column – Age
Charly's Column – Age
Charly makes life easier for himself by using the lean Age tool for command-line data encryption tasks.
Age (think "aghe" in "spaghetti") promises an uncomplicated approach to encrypting and decrypting files. Written in Go, both the source code and precompiled binaries for various platforms can be found on GitHub [1]. I tried Age on a Raspberry Pi, but the tool also runs on Linux on a PC, macOS, and Windows. The author says the current release from mid-June 2021 is "maybe actually the last v1.0.0 release candidate."
Age supports two ways to encrypt and decrypt files. With the first option, you can create a key file (Age calls this an identity file) based on SSH keys with whose contents you then encrypt the data. In contrast to SSH, this is a symmetrical procedure, so the same file is also used for decryption.
As a second option, Age lets you use a passphrase to encrypt the data. This has the advantage that you can think up a new passphrase for each encryption process. A person you trust and give a passphrase to can use it to decrypt your data – but only the data you encrypted with precisely that one passphrase.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
CIQ Releases Compatibility Catalog for Rocky Linux
The company behind Rocky Linux is making an open catalog available to developers, hobbyists, and other contributors, so they can verify and publish compatibility with the CIQ lineup.
-
KDE Gets Some Resuscitation
KDE is bringing back two themes that vanished a few years ago, putting a bit more air under its wings.
-
Ubuntu 26.04 Beta Arrives with Some Surprises
Ubuntu 26.04 is almost here, but the beta version has been released, and it might surprise some people.
-
Ubuntu MATE Dev Leaving After 12 years
Martin Wimpress, the maintainer of Ubuntu MATE, is now searching for his successor. Are you the next in line?
-
Kali Linux Waxes Nostalgic with BackTrack Mode
For those who've used Kali Linux since its inception, the changes with the new release are sure to put a smile on your face.
-
Gnome 50 Smooths Out NVIDIA GPU Issues
Gamers rejoice, your favorite pastime just got better with Gnome 50 and NVIDIA GPUs.
-
System76 Retools Thelio Desktop
The new Thelio Mira has landed with improved performance, repairability, and front-facing ports alongside a high-quality tempered glass facade.
-
Some Linux Distros Skirt Age Verification Laws
After California introduced an age verification law recently, open source operating system developers have had to get creative with how they deal with it.
-
UN Creates Open Source Portal
In a quest to strengthen open source collaboration, the United Nations Office of Information and Communications Technology has created a new portal.
-
Latest Linux Kernel RC Contains Changes Galore
Linux kernel 7.0-rc3 includes more changes than have been made in a single release in recent history.