xxtea

What it is and what it does

xxtea is a compiled Python extension wrapping the XXTEA symmetric block cipher algorithm. It takes a 128-bit (16-byte) key and encrypts or decrypts data in 32-bit word blocks. The package handles byte-to-word conversions automatically and applies a non-standard 4-byte block PKCS#7 padding by default to ensure input data meets XXTEA's requirement of at least 2 words (8 bytes) and a multiple of 4 bytes. This means you can encrypt arbitrary binary data of any length without manual padding.

The module exports four module-level functions—encrypt(), decrypt(), encrypt_hex(), and decrypt_hex()—plus an XXTEA class for creating reusable cipher objects that store the key, padding mode, and round count. Rounds default to 6 + 52/n (where n is the number of 32-bit words), but can be overridden. The non-standard padding scheme makes output incompatible with other XXTEA implementations; use padding=False for raw XXTEA if interoperability is required, though this imposes strict data-length constraints.

Use it for:

• Encrypt sensitive binary data (credentials, tokens, session data) in Python applications where XXTEA compatibility is needed.
• Implement legacy system integration where XXTEA is the mandated cipher for cross-platform communication.
• Encrypt arbitrary-length byte strings without manual padding logic by relying on the built-in PKCS#7 scheme.
• Create reusable cipher objects for batch encryption/decryption of multiple messages with the same key and settings.
• Hex-encode encrypted output for storage or transmission in text-based formats (databases, logs, APIs).

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

xxtea is a Python extension that implements the XXTEA block cipher algorithm, providing functions to encrypt and decrypt data with a 128-bit key using a non-standard 4-byte PKCS#7 padding scheme.

Yes, if you need XXTEA specifically for legacy compatibility or cross-platform communication. The package is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, supports modern Python versions (3.9–3.15), and offers prebuilt wheels for easy installation. However, be aware that its non-standard padding makes output incompatible with other XXTEA libraries; use only if interoperability with this specific implementation is required. For new projects, consider modern alternatives like cryptography or nacl.

Install

xxtea on PyPI

pip install xxtea

uv add xxtea

poetry add xxtea

Installing xxtea

Before you install

Medium install friction due to compiled C extension wheels; however, prebuilt wheels are available for Python 3.9–3.15 across major platforms (Linux, macOS, Windows) and architectures, reducing build barriers. Active maintenance with recent release.

License in practice

BSD-2-Clause is permissive; you may use, modify, and distribute this package freely in proprietary or open-source projects with minimal restrictions, provided you retain the license notice.

Quickstart

import os
import xxtea

key = os.urandom(16)  # 16-byte key required
data = b"xxtea is good"

enc = xxtea.encrypt(data, key)
dec = xxtea.decrypt(enc, key)
assert data == dec

# Or use the XXTEA type for reusable cipher
cipher = xxtea.XXTEA(key)
enc2 = cipher.encrypt(data)
dec2 = cipher.decrypt(enc2)

Key must be exactly 16 bytes; data length must be a multiple of 4 bytes and at least 8 bytes when padding=False is used.

Verify before relying

• Compatibility with other XXTEA implementations outside this library (non-standard padding may limit interoperability).
• Performance characteristics compared to other Python encryption libraries for typical use cases.
• Whether the free-threading support (Python 3.13+) has been tested in production multi-threaded scenarios.

Package facts

Evidence: xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux1_i686.manylinux_2_28_i686.manylinux_2_5_i686.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux2014_aarch64.manylinux_2_17_aarch64.manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux2014_armv7l.manylinux_2_17_armv7l.manylinux_2_31_armv7l.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux2014_ppc64le.manylinux_2_17_ppc64le.manylinux_2_28_ppc64le.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux2014_s390x.manylinux_2_17_s390x.manylinux_2_28_s390x.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux2014_x86_64.manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux_2_28_x86_64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-manylinux_2_31_riscv64.manylinux_2_39_riscv64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_aarch64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_armv7l.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_i686.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_ppc64le.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_riscv64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_s390x.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-win32.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-win_amd64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp310-cp310-win_arm64.whl; xxtea-5.3.3-cp311-cp311-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl

Keywords: xxtea

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