---
id: crypto
version: "1.4.1"
license: MIT license
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: dormant
---

# crypto — Simple symmetric GPG file encryption and decryption

License: permissive · Maintenance: dormant · Downloads: 1.0M/mo

## What it is and what it does

crypto is a lightweight command-line wrapper around GPG that simplifies symmetric file encryption and decryption on Unix, Linux, and macOS. It exposes two main commands—crypto for encryption and decrypto for decryption—and uses AES256 as its cipher algorithm. The package supports encrypting single files or entire directories, can automatically tar multiple files before encryption, and offers ASCII-armored output and SHA256 hash generation for encrypted files.

The package requires a GPG installation on your system and has no Python runtime dependencies, making installation straightforward. It was tested against Python 2.7, 3.4, and PyPy 2.6 at release time. The project has been dormant since 2015, with minimal recent maintenance, so users should verify compatibility with their specific Python and GPG versions before relying on it in production.

Use it for:

- Encrypt sensitive files on Unix/Linux systems from shell scripts or cron jobs using a simple command-line interface.
- Batch-encrypt directories by automatically creating tar archives and encrypting them with a single command.
- Generate SHA256 hashes alongside encrypted files for integrity verification.
- Decrypt GPG-encrypted files without learning full GPG command syntax or options.

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Provides command-line tools to encrypt and decrypt files using GPG with AES256 cipher, supporting single files, directories, and optional tar archiving before encryption.

Yes, if you need a simple GPG wrapper for basic file encryption on Unix/Linux and are comfortable with dormant maintenance. The low install friction, permissive MIT license, and zero runtime dependencies make it lightweight. However, verify Python and GPG compatibility first, since the package has not been actively maintained since 2015 and may have undiscovered issues with modern toolchains.

## Install

pip install crypto
uv add crypto
poetry add crypto

## Installing crypto

Before you install: Low install friction with no runtime dependencies. Dormant since 2015 but repository remains unarchived; last commit in February 2024 suggests minimal maintenance activity.

License in practice: MIT license permits commercial and private use with minimal restrictions, making it safe for most deployment contexts.

Quickstart:

$ pip install crypto
$ crypto /path/to/file
$ decrypto /path/to/file.gpg

Requires GPG (Gnu Privacy Guard) installed and available on the system; Unix/Linux/macOS only.

Verify before relying:

- Whether the package works reliably with modern Python versions beyond those tested in 2014–2015.
- Current compatibility with recent GPG versions and whether AES256 benchmarks remain relevant.
- Whether dormant status and lack of recent updates pose security or compatibility risks for new deployments.

## Package facts

- License: MIT license (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: dormant
- Downloads: 1.0M/month (top 5,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

gpg file encryption command line, aes256 symmetric encryption tool, encrypt decrypt files unix linux, gpg wrapper simple interface, batch file encryption decryption, gpg-wrapper, command-line-tool

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/crypto) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/crypto/)