seahorse

seahorse [OPTION...]

-h, --help
    Displays standard help options, including generic GTK+ options.

--help-all
    Displays all help options, including specific GNOME/GTK+ options.

--help-gtk
    Displays GTK+ options specific to graphical applications.

-v, --version
    Displays the version information of the Seahorse application.

--display=DISPLAY
    Specifies the X display to use for the graphical interface.

Seahorse is the official GNOME application for managing encryption keys, passwords, and certificates. It provides a graphical interface for creating, importing, exporting, and managing various cryptographic keys and certificates.

It serves as a user-friendly frontend for complex underlying tools like GnuPG (for PGP keys) and OpenSSH (for SSH keys), and also manages X.509 certificates. Seahorse allows users to generate new key pairs, import existing keys, sign and encrypt files, verify signatures, and manage trusted keys and key servers. It is tightly integrated with the GNOME Keyring, providing a central place for cryptographic material.

Seahorse is primarily a graphical user interface (GUI) application. Its command-line options are very limited, mostly for launching the application or displaying version/help information. For detailed key management operations via the command line, users should refer to underlying tools like gpg, ssh-keygen, or certtool. Seahorse itself does not offer command-line functionality for key creation, import, or export.

Seahorse serves as the primary graphical interface for managing the contents of the GNOME Keyring. The GNOME Keyring is a system service that securely stores sensitive information such as passwords, SSH keys, and GnuPG keys, providing a secure and centralized repository for cryptographic data.

Seahorse provides management capabilities for various types of cryptographic keys:

• PGP (GnuPG) Keys: Used for email encryption, digital signatures, and secure communication.
• SSH Keys: Used for secure remote login to servers and version control systems.
• X.509 Certificates: Used for securing web communication (SSL/TLS), identity verification, and digital signatures in various applications.

Seahorse has been a fundamental component of the GNOME desktop environment since its early stages, designed to simplify the complex task of managing cryptographic keys for general users. Its development is closely linked to the GNOME Keyring project, aiming to provide a seamless and secure experience for handling digital identities, passwords, and encryption keys within the desktop environment.

gpg(1), ssh-keygen(1), gnome-keyring(1), gcr-viewer(1)