12. Anonymity basics: Signing and encrypting messages and files with PGP

It is fairly easy! You can do it from CLI in any Linux distro, or you can have a nice manager like Kleopatra.

It can encrypt messages and files.

Encryption can be done with one key, multiple keys, any combination of keys and a password separately in layers. So anything imaginable is possible.

When you make a key remember to pick the hardest encryption to break.

Give your public key so that others can encrypt for you.

Do NOT give your private key because others would be able to pretend to be you and decrypt stuff meant for you!!!

You can set an expiry date for your key.

E-mail field is optional.

Signing can be used to prove it is you despite using different accounts on different websites. Encryption can be used to use a public spying chat app in a way that the hosting company does not know the contents. Windows defender for example checks signatures of applications and determines whether to ask you for confirmation when you run "an application from an unknown source" or windows defender acts differently in general when they can check the signature. Linux repositories require keys too in order to prevent imposter packages from getting installed and hacking computers.

It becomes easy to use once you play around with it for a few minutes.

We had fun with it here https://img.heyuri.net/b/koko.php?res=153857