Encrypt a Single File in Linux with OpenSSL

Posted on July 14, 2025 in Linux

ENCRYPT SINGLE FILE

Encrypting a Single File in Ubuntu

Encrypt:

openssl aes-256-cdc < yourfile.txt > yourfile.txt.asc

openssl enc -d -aes-256-cbc -pass pass:the-encrypted-files-passphrase -p -in yourfile.txt -out yourfile.enc

Alternatively, use -in and -out for your input and output file instead of < and >

This will prompt you for a passphrase, which you will need to enter later when decrypting the file.

Decrypt:

openssl aes-256-cdc -d < yourfile.txt.asc > yourfile.txt.decrypted

openssl enc -aes-256-cbc -pass pass:the-encrypted-files-passphrase -d -in yourfile.enc -out yourfile.txt

linux command line useful commands openssl encryption decryption