PGP messages

User Support
1

Hello,

What are some ways to handle a lot of PGP encrypted messages and signatures and things like that.
I am coming from Tails OS which has a PGP client built in that automatically detects if there is a PGP message highlighted. Is there a way to make this work in Qubes as well?

Thank you.

edit:

To clarify more: I want to be able to read and create hundreds of PGP messages efficiently and independently from email fast. In Tails this is easy. I don’t really care if it’s the same or a different approach. It just needs to be functional.

edit 2:

I found GPA from GnuPG - Download.
It seems to fullfil my requirements so far.

2

i still can’t find any program can do that
you need to install software to have gui
if you don’t want to install software, also afaik, you need to do this in terminal using gpg2 (or the older version gpg)(i’m not frequently interact with pgp/gpg so i don’t remember how, maybe see man gpg2)

3

Correct. Only quick solution I can give, is: using pgKG in the whonix-ws qube with open text editor to have a halfway feeling of the known TailsOS functions…

4

Choose whichever Qubes you want to do mail, encryption, decryption. Open that Qube.

Upper right hand side of screen, start Qubes Manager. Go along the tabs. Find the one that leads to install 'Software."

This will, after a few minutes,will allow you to choose which Software Apps you want. Which would be Thunderbird, Kleopatra, perhaps Seahorse. (I installed it anyway. I did see a note that Thunderbird now has some encryption features already installed)

For me and my paranoia. I will spend some time learning to do all decryption, encryption by ‘Command Line.’ I think there is a detailed help on Riseup.net. Personally I might try to look at Whonix help first. At one time it was discovered that some email Clients were helping us out by doing a cloud save of its information, including messages in the clear. I realize the folks who do Thunderbird, or perhaps Clawsmail (is Clawsmail still being supported?) are devoted to making sure it will not happen again, but, Paranoia is such fun.

Likewise at one time M$ Word helped folks out by saving their documents in the cloud automatically. But we don’t use M$ Word, right.

There is a part of Qubes called Split GPG, for helping to keep keyrings secure. I have other things to do, like wash clothes, so I have not had time to figure out exactly all the features needed to make it functional. At some points, it looks like Split GPG has some issues.

I am not posting this from a Qubes computer, so I might be a bit off in where to look for things, so it is a good adventure in discovering where the levers of Qubes are.

I am also personally concerned about Spelling help programs, which are a great place to spy on what I am writing.

5

the op doesn’t sad all pgp messages op received is using email

i don’t understand the context

you only have to concern the online one (grammarly), not offline (libreoffice)

6

Displaying my Paranoia that programs, like Thunderbird, might have an update which changes how it works. Perhaps update activates a feature that I missed. Perhaps spell checking.

If there is anyway I can mess up my own security, when I am bleary eyed, without coffee, like working online when it would be smarter to be offline. I will do it.

If it helps, there is a person who is currently working on a means to automatically make a version of Qubes easier for Journalists. Thanks to that person.

7

To clarify more: I want to be able to read and create hundreds of PGP messages efficiently and independently from email fast. In Tails this is easy. I don’t really care if it’s the same or a different approach. It just needs to be functional.

Only quick solution I can give, is: using pgKG in the whonix-ws qube with open text editor to have a halfway feeling of the known TailsOS functions…

Hey,

Can you explain what you mean with pgKG?

8

Yeah, I am considering simply doing it in the terminal. It has a steep learning curve though so I would prefer not going this route if there is a good alternative.
I am sure there are others who would appreciate a good solution to this problem too.

9

I assume because you are now using Qubes that you have weighed the differences in security/privacy compared to Tails. You are apparently okay using something less amnesic in favor of something more compartmentalized. That being the case, you can install Tails inside of a Qubes VM with good results. You just need to tweak the networking inside of Tails to connect to the vif addresses within Qubes and configure sys-net to randomize your MAC address (if you want). That would allow you to use familiar software and have the added convenience of Qubes integration.

10

I’m afraid I missunderstood your question. Just was meaning of using KGpg (or another pgp tool like gpa) with an open editor…
This isn’t probably, what you’re looking for.

11

That’s exactly what I am looking for. I don’t need the exact same functionality as Tails OS, just ways to quickly work with PGP efficiently.

Thank you.