install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install gpa

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#gpa

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/gp/gpa/package.nix · source: api.github.com

Ubuntu aptverified · 92%

sudo apt install gpa

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · gpa · source: archive.ubuntu.com

openSUSE zypperverified · 92%

sudo zypper install gpa

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · gpa · source: download.opensuse.org

overview

Package summary

Graphical user interface for the GnuPG

Project links

Commands and aliases

gpa

history

Project history and usage

GPA, the GNU Privacy Assistant, is a GTK graphical frontend for GnuPG. It provides key management plus encryption, decryption, signing, and signature verification for users who prefer a desktop interface over direct `gpg` command-line use.

Project history

The GPA repository history was initialized from CVS in February 2000, and the repository records early 2000 work on UI design, GPAPA integration, and version 0.1.0. The README credits early copyright ownership to G-N-U GmbH, Miguel Coca, and g10 Code GmbH, and notes use of fragments from JNLIB, GPGME, and WinPT.

GnuPG project pages describe GPA as a graphical user interface for GnuPG using GTK+. Werner Koch described it on the GnuPG users list in 2010 as the first GUI frontend for GPG, which matches its place in the GnuPG desktop tooling family.

Adoption history

GPA followed the evolution of GnuPG itself: releases in the 0.9 series added support for GnuPG 2.1 era features such as ECC, keyserver operations, and TOFU information, while later 0.10 and 0.11 releases improved diagnostics, Web Key Directory lookup behavior, and GTK 3 support.

How it is used

GPA is used for OpenPGP and S/MIME-oriented desktop workflows: managing private and public keys, encrypting and decrypting files, signing data, verifying signatures, and calling into GnuPG through GPGME rather than reimplementing cryptography.

Why package nerds care

Package maintainers care about GPA because it sits at the intersection of GUI toolkit churn, GnuPG/GPGME ABI compatibility, and desktop security UX. It is optional software in the GnuPG download family, but it depends on the same trust, keyring, and protocol stack that distributions already package for command-line GnuPG.

Timeline

2000: CVS-derived repository history begins and version 0.1.0 appears in the commit history.
2010: Werner Koch describes GPA as the first GUI frontend for GPG on the GnuPG users list.
2014: GPA 0.9.5 adds ECC awareness and UI-server startup behavior.
2016: GPA 0.9.10 adds basic TOFU information and several key-management fixes.
2018: GPA 0.10.0 adds diagnostic details, Web Key Directory lookup behavior, and key-manager improvements.
2024: GPA 0.11.0 ports the application to GTK 3.
2026: GPA 0.11.1 fixes GPGME 2.x build compatibility and a marshaling crash.

Related projects

GnuPG provides the cryptographic backend and command-line tools.
GPGME is the library layer GPA uses to access GnuPG functionality.
Pinentry, Scute, and other GnuPG frontends and tools occupy adjacent roles in the GnuPG software family.

Sources

security posture

Risk level: green

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.

Risk classifier

green risk · low confidence · appliance

Why

narrow executable package without higher-risk signals

Signals

metadata:no-higher-risk-signals

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Installs with 11 runtime dependencies.
Build metadata lists 2 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`gpa`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-07-08

manager version0.11.1

manager updated2026-06-28

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://www.gnupg.org/related_software/gpa/

infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://www.gnupg.org/related_software/gpa/none confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:gpa
Version	0.11.1
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/gpa
Homepage	https://www.gnupg.org/related_software/gpa/
Repository	https://dev.gnupg.org/source/gpa.git
Upstream docs	https://www.gnupg.org/software/gpa/index.html
License	GPL-3.0-or-later
Source archive	https://gnupg.org/ftp/gcrypt/gpa/gpa-0.11.1.tar.bz2
Last updated	2026-06-28T23:10:47-04:00
Pulse	updated
Dependencies	at-spi2-core, cairo, gdk-pixbuf, gettext, glib, gpgme, gtk+3, harfbuzz, libassuan, libgpg-error, pango
Build dependencies	desktop-file-utils, pkgconf
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	gpa
Version Scheme	0
Revision	0
Head Version	HEAD
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	head stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Nix95%

gpa

nix profile install nixpkgs#gpa

normalized package name match
Matched by: Gpa

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/gp/gpa/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

Ubuntu apt95%

gpa 0.10.0-6

GNU Privacy Assistant (GPA)

https://gnupg.org/software/gpa/index.html

sudo apt install gpa

Section: universe/utils
Architecture: amd64
11 dependencies
normalized package name match
Matched by: Gpa

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: gpa from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz

zypper95%

gpa 0.11.1-1.3

GNU Privacy Assistant

https://www.gnupg.org/related_software/gpa/index.html

sudo zypper install gpa

License: GPL-3.0-only
Category: Productivity/Security
Architecture: x86_64
Source Package: gpa
12 dependencies
3 provides
normalized package name match
Matched by: Gpa

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: gpa from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst

zypper95%

gpa-lang 0.11.1-1.3

Translations for package gpa

https://www.gnupg.org/related_software/gpa/index.html

sudo zypper install gpa-lang

License: GPL-3.0-only
Category: System/Localization
Architecture: noarch
Source Package: gpa
1 dependencies
3 provides
normalized package name match
Matched by: Gpa

openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata · download.opensuse.org · openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: gpa-lang from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/gpa.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
Nucleus package database
av.db category and tag curation
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment

Install gpa with Homebrew, Nix, apt, zypper