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(mailcrypt.info)Key Fetching

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Key Fetching
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   Mailcrypt knows how to fetch PGP public keys from the key servers
(Note: Key Servers).  The function `mc-pgp-fetch-key' is bound by
default to `C-c / k' in both `mc-read-mode' and `mc-write-mode'.
Additionally, `mc-encrypt', `mc-decrypt', and `mc-verify' will offer to
call this function to automatically fetch a desired key.  If you call
it manually, it will prompt you for the User ID of the key to fetch.

   The variable `mc-pgp-fetch-methods' is a list of ways to attempt to
fetch a key.  (More precisely, it is a list of functions to be called,
each of which will attempt to fetch the key.)  The methods will be tried
in the order listed.  The default list is:

     '(mc-pgp-fetch-from-keyrings
       mc-pgp-fetch-from-finger
       mc-pgp-fetch-from-http)

   For a description of these functions, see the following sections.

   If you are not directly on the Internet, you probably want to obtain
a copy of the global public key ring from the keyservers, install it
somewhere under the name `public-keys.pgp', and do:

     (setq mc-pgp-fetch-methods '(mc-pgp-fetch-from-keyrings))
     (setq mc-pgp-fetch-keyring-list '("/blah/blah/blah/public-keys.pgp"))

   This will allow you to fetch keys from your local copy of the global
key ring instead of sending requests to the key servers directly (Note:
Keyring Fetch).  Alternately, if your organization has a proxy HTTP
server, you can configure Mailcrypt to use that.  See Note: HTTP
Fetch.

   If the key is found, you will be shown the result of running PGP on
it locally.  This allows you to inspect the signatures on the key
_relative to your own keyring_ before you consent to having it added.
*Inspect the signatures carefully!*  Key distribution is often the
Achilles' heel of public key protocols.  If you blindly use keys
obtained from the key servers, you are asking for trouble.

   All of the methods use `mc-pgp-fetch-timeout' as a timeout in
seconds; the default value is 30.

Keyring Fetch

Fetching from one or more other

keyrings on the local system.

Finger Fetch

Fetching a key through finger.

HTTP Fetch

Fetching a key off of the Web.