Silk Road forums

Discussion => Security => Topic started by: PsilocybinTendencies on June 07, 2012, 04:03 pm

Title: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: PsilocybinTendencies on June 07, 2012, 04:03 pm
Hi guys,

I noticed lots of people struggle with PGP, and I just wrote this in a PM to somebody, but then I thought maybe others could benefit if I posted it. So I hope this helps somebody. This is my attempt to explain, as simply as possible, how to use GnuPG.

Here's the download link: http://www.gnupg.org/download/index.en.html

and here's the instructions:

Quote
Let me help you out, in the start menu folder where you installed GNUPG, do you see a shortcut called "GPA?"

That's the shortcut you're going to use. It will pop up a screen that says "Key Manager."

Press ctrl-N to make yourself a new key. When it asks for a name please use your vendor name to make things easy on people. Leave it unsigned. Enter any email address you want (most use their tormail). Then it will ask for a password, and make you your key. When the key is made, you can right click on it, and hit copy, and it will copy your public key to the clipboard so you can paste it into silk road and your forum account.

Now, when somebody sends you a pgp message, you can go into the clipboard, paste the message there, hit "decrypt," select your key, and enter your password.

If you want to write to somebody, first you copy their key to the clipboard (highlight, then ctrl-c). Then you make a plain text document using notepad, paste the key in there (probably best to make the text file in an encrypted container using truecrypt), save it. Go back to "Key Manager," hit import, navigate to where you saved the text file, click it. It will confirm that a key has been imported. Then you can open the clipboard, type whatever you wanna say, highlight it, then click "Encrypt." A list of people whose public keys you've imported should pop up, here you pick the keys that you want to be able to decrypt the message. Pick you keys, hit ok, and a bunch of gibberish will pop up. You can copy and paste this gibberish into your PM window or whatever.

And that is how you communicate with PGP.

I hope this helps, let me know if anything needs clarified.
Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: HardHustle on June 12, 2012, 10:53 pm
Do you recommend 1.4 or 2.0?
Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: PsilocybinTendencies on June 13, 2012, 02:45 am
Do you recommend 1.4 or 2.0?

I'm not qualified to make a recommendation.
Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: Larfa on June 13, 2012, 03:16 am
Who is the vendor, the buyer or seller? Or does vendor stand for both. 

Also does it matter if you use a made-up email.

Thanks
Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: PsilocybinTendencies on June 13, 2012, 03:37 am
It doesn't matter if you use a made up e-mail.

By vendor I mean seller. Sorry.
Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: Larfa on June 13, 2012, 04:29 am
Thank you PsilocybinTendencies!

Because of your posts I figured out that I can encrypt and decrypt PGP messages using the GNU Privacy Assistant Key Manager itself, via the Clipboard.  I was going nuts trying to figure out where the program was that actually did the encrypt/decrypt of PGP messages. My brain ridges hurt.

Title: Re: Using PGP for noobs.
Post by: PsilocybinTendencies on June 13, 2012, 12:31 pm
Glad I could help.

 :)