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Changelog ​

All notable changes to this project are documented in this file.

The format is based on Keep a Changelog, and this project adheres to Semantic Versioning.

Unreleased ​

Changed ​

  • Addresses: the website footer links to the documentation (docs.getcadenas.com), and so does the command-line help; the Homebrew formula, the winget manifest, the Docker image and the npm package point to getcadenas.com.
  • Contacts on the domain: security@getcadenas.com (vulnerabilities, besides GitHub private reporting), conduct@getcadenas.com (code of conduct), contact@getcadenas.com.

Security ​

  • Bidirectional control characters (U+202E…) are removed from the name of the decrypted file: they can no longer disguise its extension.
  • docs/ASSURANCE: the site on GitHub Pages shares its origin with the account's other pages; limitation documented.
  • The online site moves to its own domain, https://getcadenas.com/: it no longer shares its origin with the account's other pages. The old address redirects to it.

Documentation ​

  • Documentation website, in English and French, at https://docs.getcadenas.com/: guides (website, sharing a file, passwords, command line, Docker, library, formats), FAQ and the repository's reference documents, picked up on every build.

1.7.0 - 2026-10-05 ​

A simple page to open an encrypted file you received, and security fixes after an audit: crafted age files can no longer exhaust memory, and the command line no longer overwrites a file that appears during processing. Two compatibility limits, detailed below: age files with a scrypt work factor above 18, and files encrypted with a password file starting with a byte order mark (BOM).

Added ​

  • Website: a page dedicated to decrypting, at #decrypt (#dechiffrer in French), to share with whoever receives an encrypted file: one file, no options, and a clear message if the chosen file is not encrypted. The home page links to it ("Received an encrypted file? Open it here"), and after encrypting, the address to give the recipient is shown, with the advice to send the password some other way.

Changed ​

  • Website: the details of an encrypted file are shorter ("3 MB · encrypted file").
  • Dependencies: vite 8.3.2, nginx-unprivileged base image refreshed, SignPath signing action 3.0.

Security ​

  • age files: before running scrypt, cadenas rejects a work factor above 18 (256 MiB, age's default and the same bound as Argon2id). A crafted file with a work factor of 20 used 1 GiB of memory before the password was checked. Encrypting with a higher work factor is refused too. Files encrypted by cadenas always use 18; an age file made with age and a higher work factor (19 to 22) can no longer be opened by cadenas.
  • age files: a header larger than 64 KiB and an armored file larger than 128 MiB are rejected without being read in full (new TOO_LARGE error).
  • Command line: a file created at the output path while the password is typed, or during processing, is no longer overwritten without -f.
  • The password bytes and the key are wiped after use in more cases (failed read during encryption).
  • CI: the Pages permissions are limited to the deployment job, actions/checkout no longer keeps the token where it is not needed, and Dependabot waits 7 days before proposing a new version.

Fixed ​

  • --password-file and --password-stdin ignore the byte order mark (BOM) added by Windows Notepad or PowerShell, which made the password wrong. A file encrypted with such a password file by an earlier version has the BOM in its password and opens only with cadenas 1.6.0 or earlier.
  • Password input: pressing Esc no longer swallows the next key.

Documentation ​

  • docs/FORMAT.md: unknown kdf byte, armored age form and age limits.
  • docs/ASSURANCE.md: on GitHub Pages, the page CSP does not apply to the workers.

1.6.0 - 2026-10-01 ​

Security hardening after two external reviews (Argon2id cost limits, key wiping, safer password input and temporary files, anti-framing), Homebrew and winget published at each release, and passphrases separated by hyphens. The Argon2id limits of the .cadenas format are lowered: files written by cadenas are not affected.

Added ​

  • Windows executable: file properties of cadenas (product name, version, publisher) instead of those of Node.js, and code signing through SignPath ready in the release workflow, enabled once the project is accepted by the SignPath Foundation (docs/CODE_SIGNING.md).
  • Releases: the Homebrew formula is tested and published, and a winget pull request is opened, automatically after each GitHub release (homebrew and winget jobs of release.yml). scripts/packaging.js accepts --homebrew or --winget to generate only one of them.
  • Installation with Homebrew (macOS, Linux): brew install pierreebele/cadenas/cadenas, from the PierreEbele/homebrew-cadenas tap, tested on macOS and Linux.

Changed ​

  • Passphrases: words are now separated by hyphens (navaux-tapageur-faucher-gazier-girafon) instead of spaces: no invisible double or trailing space, no quotes needed in a terminal, accepted by sites that refuse spaces. The English list loses its 4 hyphenated words (7,772 words instead of 7,776, still more than 64 bits for 5 words). Existing passphrases are not affected.

Fixed ​

  • Armored age files: only the start of the file is read to recognize a passphrase file, instead of converting the whole file to text (twice the memory, and a crash above 512 MB).
  • CLI: -f now also overwrites a read-only output file on Windows.
  • Website: a .cadenas or .age file whose content is not recognized (damaged) is reported, instead of being encrypted a second time.
  • Building the standalone executables works from a path with spaces or accents.

Security ​

  • Format: Argon2id parameters are limited to 256 MiB and 16 passes (instead of 1 GiB and 64), in FORMAT.md and in the code. A crafted file can no longer impose more than about twenty times the default cost before its header is authenticated. Files written by cadenas (64 MiB, 3 passes) are not affected; files written with larger parameters through the library are now rejected.
  • Derived keys: the header key is now wiped from memory after use, like the Argon2id output and the content key.
  • CLI: output files are created readable by their owner only (0600), and the temporary file, which may hold part of the decrypted content, is deleted on Ctrl+C or when the process is stopped.
  • CLI: escape sequences sent by the arrow, Delete or Home keys are ignored while typing the password; their characters were silently added to it. The terminal is restored even if the program is stopped while the password is typed.
  • Website: the page refuses to run inside a frame of another site. On GitHub Pages, the security policy only comes through <meta>, where frame-ancestors is ignored.
  • Archives: drive letters (C:) are removed from entry paths and : is replaced with _, which a Windows extractor could interpret as an alternate data stream.

1.5.0 - 2026-09-30 ​

Hide file names, verify a file without decrypting it to disk, open encrypted files straight from the system, large files on Firefox and Safari without memory limits, and everything in English or French. No change to the file format or the encryption.

Added ​

  • "Hide file name" option (website) and --hide-name (CLI): the file is placed in a .zip archive before encryption, and the result is given a neutral name (cadenas-YYYY-MM-DD.zip.cadenas). The original name is only visible after decryption. No change to the format.
  • CLI: cadenas verify <file> command, which checks that a .cadenas or .age file is intact and the password is correct, without writing anything (exit code 0 or 1, handy for verifying backups).
  • Website, Firefox and Safari: above 256 MiB, the result is downloaded as encryption proceeds, served by the service worker, instead of being kept entirely in memory. No more memory-related size limit on these browsers (after a first visit to the site).
  • Installed website (Chrome, Edge): cadenas appears in "Open with" for .cadenas and .age files, which open ready to decrypt.
  • Documentation in English by default, with a French version of each document (*.fr.md) and a language switch at the top. The website footer links to the documents in the displayed language, and release notes are in English.
  • packaging/: Homebrew formula (macOS, Linux) and winget manifests (Windows), generated for a released version by scripts/packaging.js from the release checksums and the npm package. Publishing procedure in packaging/README.md.
  • End-to-end tests of the website in Chromium, Firefox and WebKit (Playwright), enforced by CI: encrypt then decrypt, interoperability with the library and the age format, multi-file archive, wrong password, offline operation, CSP actually applied, no requests outside the site, axe accessibility audit (WCAG 2.1 AA, light and dark themes) and full keyboard navigation. npm run test:e2e.
  • CI: the website is built on Linux, Windows and macOS, with Node.js 22 and 24, and the six builds must be bit-for-bit identical (reproducible build). scripts/site-hashes.js produces the list of hashes (site-files.sha256 in releases); SECURITY.md explains how to verify for yourself that the published site matches the source code.

Changed ​

  • CLI: messages in English or French, following the system language (LC_ALL, LC_MESSAGES, LANG, LANGUAGE, or the regional settings on Windows). cadenas passphrase uses the word list of that language unless --lang is given.
  • CLI: messages are now in English unless the system language is French (they were always in French). Scripts that read them should rely on the exit code, which is unchanged.
  • cadenas passphrase: without --lang, the word list follows the interface language (it was always French).

Security ​

  • Publishing: scripts/verify-tag.js also checks that the tag points to the commit carrying its version (package.json); the release, npm and Docker workflows therefore reject a tag placed on the wrong commit, before any publication.
  • New npm run release:tag script: creates the signed tag only from a clean, up-to-date main, for a version listed in the CHANGELOG, then verifies it.
  • Website: the Content Security Policy now allows frames from the site itself (frame-src 'self'), used only for streamed downloads; frames from other sites stay blocked.

1.4.1 - 2026-09-30 ​

Hardening of the website's service worker. No change to the file format or the encryption.

Security ​

  • Website: the service worker verifies the origin of the messages it receives before installing a new version (CodeQL alert "Missing origin verification in postMessage handler").

1.4.0 - 2026-09-28 ​

English README, documented project (OpenSSF Best Practices badge, silver level) and hardened publishing: signed version tags, provenance attached to releases. No change to the file format or the encryption.

Added ​

  • English README (README.md, displayed by default on GitHub and npm); the French version becomes README.fr.md, with a link between the two.
  • OpenSSF Best Practices badge (silver level) in the README.
  • Project documentation: governance and roles (GOVERNANCE.md), code of conduct (Contributor Covenant 2.1), roadmap (ROADMAP.md), architecture (docs/ARCHITECTURE.md), security rationale with threat model (docs/ASSURANCE.md).
  • ESLint (recommended configuration): npm run lint, enforced by CI, and code style described in CONTRIBUTING.md.
  • CI: test coverage of src/ and bin/ measured on every push, with a minimum of 80% (npm run test:coverage).

Changed ​

  • npm package: English description, more complete keywords, homepage pointing to the website.
  • npm publishing: the npm bundled with Node.js 24 is used (and its version checked) instead of installing another unpinned version.

Security ​

  • Signed (SSH) version tags: the publishing workflows (release, npm, Docker) verify the tag signature with scripts/verify-tag.js and refuse to publish an unsigned version. Procedure in CONTRIBUTING.md, verification in SECURITY.md.
  • GitHub releases: signed provenance is attached to every release (.sigstore.json and .intoto.jsonl in SLSA format), for offline verification.
  • SECURITY.md: process for handling vulnerability reports (timeframes, disclosure, credit).

1.3.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Installable, offline-capable website, standalone CLI executables. No change to the file format.

Added ​

  • Website installable and usable offline (progressive web app): manifest, icons, and a service worker that caches all site files. A new version installs in the background and only takes effect after clicking "Update", never in the middle of an encryption.
  • Docker image: the service worker gets its own content security policy (connect-src 'self', to cache the site); the page keeps connect-src 'none'. The manifest is served with the correct MIME type.
  • Standalone CLI executables, no Node.js to install: Windows x64, macOS arm64, Linux x64 and arm64. Built by CI (Node.js "Single Executable Application"), tested on each platform before release, attached to every release with checksums and a provenance attestation. npm run build:exe builds the one for the current platform.
  • The release workflow can be triggered manually to build and test everything without publishing anything.

Changed ​

  • README: updated screenshots (passphrase generator, language selector), offline installation.

1.2.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Multiple files and folders, files of any size on the website, and a CLI ready for backup scripts. No change to the file format.

Added ​

  • Archives: multiple files or a folder are bundled into a .zip archive produced as a stream (src/archive.js, client-zip library), then encrypted into a single file. Directory structure and Unicode names preserved, paths sanitized (no absolute paths or ..), duplicates renamed, Zip64 beyond 4 GB, files opened one at a time.
  • Website: multiple files or an entire folder, by drag-and-drop or selection ("Choose an entire folder" button). They are combined into folder.zip (or cadenas-YYYY-MM-DD.zip) and then encrypted; on decryption, the site reminds you that the archive simply needs to be opened.
  • Website: beyond 256 MiB, the result is written directly to disk (Chrome, Edge: the site asks where to save it before starting), with constant memory usage regardless of size. On other browsers, a message recommends Chrome, Edge, or the command line for several GB.
  • CLI: cadenas lock accepts multiple files and folders (traversed recursively, symbolic links ignored) → folder.zip.cadenas or cadenas-YYYY-MM-DD.zip.cadenas.
  • CLI: - for standard input (cadenas lock -, cadenas unlock -) and -o - for standard output; refuses to write binary to a terminal.
  • CLI: --password-file <file> option; when standard input carries the data, the password is prompted directly on the terminal.

Changed ​

  • CLI: success messages ("✔ File encrypted…") now go to standard error, so that standard output contains only data.

1.1.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Passphrase generator, English website, and a fully verifiable release pipeline. No change to the file format.

Added ​

  • Passphrase generator: "Generate a passphrase" button on the website (with one-click copy) and cadenas passphrase [--words n] [--lang fr|en] command. 5 words drawn without bias from the system random generator, more than 64 bits of entropy. Word lists: Tails (French, CC0) and EFF (English, CC BY 3.0 US), loaded on demand only on the website.
  • Website: "Cancel" button during encryption or decryption.
  • Website: the browser asks for confirmation before leaving the page during processing, or if the result has not been downloaded yet.
  • English website: language chosen based on the browser, "English / Français" button in the footer, choice remembered. The passphrase generator uses the word list of the displayed language.

Security ​

  • Dependabot: weekly updates of npm dependencies, GitHub Actions, and the Docker base image; automatic security fixes.
  • CodeQL analysis of code and workflows on every push and every week.
  • OpenSSF Scorecard: public score of best practices, badge in the README.
  • Private vulnerability reporting enabled on GitHub.
  • GitHub Actions updated to their latest major versions.
  • Docker image signed with cosign (keyless, Sigstore), with SBOM and provenance attestation.
  • GitHub releases created automatically by CI: notes drawn from the CHANGELOG, website archived (cadenas-site-vX.Y.Z.zip), SHA256SUMS and site-files.sha256 fingerprints, verifiable provenance attestation with gh attestation verify.
  • SECURITY.md: how to verify the npm package, the Docker image, release files, and a self-hosted website.
  • CI dependencies pinned: GitHub Actions by commit hash, base Docker images by digest, npm version fixed (Dependabot keeps them up to date).
  • main branch protected against deletion and history rewriting.
  • Property-based tests (fuzzing with fast-check): round-trip for any content, password, and chunking; detection of any modification, truncation, or added bytes; clean rejection of arbitrary inputs.

Changed ​

  • README: screenshot of the website, in light and dark versions depending on the reader's theme.

1.0.2 - 2026-09-27 ​

First release published automatically by GitHub Actions, with verifiable provenance attestation on npm. No code changes.

Added ​

  • Automatic publication on npm on every version tag (.github/workflows/npm.yml), via trusted publishing (OIDC): no stored token, provenance attestation attached to each release, check that the tag matches package.json.

1.0.1 - 2026-09-27 ​

First publication on npm: npm install -g cadenas. No code changes.

Changed ​

  • README: installation via npm (npm install -g cadenas, npx cadenas) and npm version badge.
  • package.json: tests run automatically before each publication (prepublishOnly); public publication by default.

1.0.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

First stable release. The .cadenas v1 format is now frozen: files encrypted with this version will remain readable by all future versions.

In summary:

  • Website 100% in the browser for encrypting / decrypting a file with a password, online at https://pierreebele.github.io/cadenas/.
  • Self-hostable Docker image: docker run -p 8080:8080 ghcr.io/pierreebele/cadenas.
  • Command line: cadenas lock / cadenas unlock.
  • .cadenas v1 format (Argon2id + XChaCha20-Poly1305), specified in docs/FORMAT.md.
  • age compatibility for both reading and writing.

Added ​

  • Full README: website usage, Docker hosting, command line, format comparison, security, API, development.
  • CONTRIBUTING.md: project principles, format evolution rules, release process.

0.7.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • GitHub Actions continuous integration (.github/workflows/ci.yml):
    • tests and builds on Linux, Windows and macOS with Node.js 22 and 24;
    • real interoperability with the official age tool, in both directions;
    • Docker image build and verification of security headers, served content, and non-root execution.
  • Automatic deployment of the website to GitHub Pages on every push to main (pages.yml).
  • Image published to GitHub Container Registry on every release, for linux/amd64 and linux/arm64 (docker.yml).

Changed ​

  • Node.js 22 minimum (Node.js 20 is no longer maintained as of April 2026).

0.6.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • cadenas command-line interface (bin/cadenas.js, no additional dependencies):
    • cadenas lock <file> → <file>.cadenas, or <file>.age with --age;
    • cadenas unlock <file>: format detected automatically;
    • encrypt / decrypt aliases;
    • options -o/--output, -f/--force, --password-stdin, -h/--help, -v/--version.
  • Masked password input with confirmation (src/prompt.js).
  • Atomic writes: if the password is wrong or the file is corrupted, no partial file is left behind.
  • Refuses to overwrite an existing file without -f.
  • Progress displayed in the terminal; exit codes 0 (success), 1 (error), 2 (misuse), 130 (cancellation).
  • End-to-end CLI tests (real processes).
  • package.json: bin, exports, and files fields for a future npm release.

0.5.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • Self-hostable Docker image (Dockerfile) :
    • two-stage build: Vite in node:24-alpine, then served by nginx-unprivileged (non-root user, port 8080) ;
    • the container serves only static files: the server never sees any file or password ;
    • built-in health check.
  • nginx configuration (docker/) : strict security headers, including a CSP connect-src 'none' that technically forbids the page from making any network connection ; long-term caching for versioned files ; no access logs.
  • compose.yaml : launch with a single command, read-only, unprivileged container.
  • The same CSP is injected into the HTML at build time, for hosts without custom header support (GitHub Pages).

0.4.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • Website (web/), built with Vite as static pages :
    • drag-and-drop or file selection, automatic encrypt/decrypt detection ;
    • password with confirmation, on-demand visibility and strength indicator ;
    • choice of .cadenas (recommended) or .age format ;
    • encryption in a Web Worker (the page never freezes) with a progress bar ;
    • automatic light/dark theme, mobile-friendly layout, keyboard navigation ;
    • no external resources, no network requests: everything stays in the browser.
  • src/detect.js (dependency-free format detection) and src/names.js (names of output files), shared with the upcoming CLI.
  • npm run dev, npm run build, npm run preview scripts.

0.3.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • Compatibility with the age format via the official age-encryption library (src/format-age.js) :
    • password-based (scrypt) age encryption, readable by age -d and rage ;
    • decryption of binary and armored (age -a) age files ;
    • clear message for age files encrypted to a public key (not supported).
  • Single public API src/core.js: encrypt(stream, password, { format }) and decrypt(stream, password) with automatic format detection based on the first bytes.
  • New error code UNSUPPORTED_AGE.

0.2.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • .cadenas v1 file format (src/format-cadenas.js) :
    • password derivation using Argon2id (64 MiB, 3 passes by default, parameters stored in the header) ;
    • separate header and content keys derived via HKDF-SHA256 ;
    • header authenticated with HMAC-SHA256: a wrong password is detected immediately ;
    • content encrypted with XChaCha20-Poly1305 in 64 KiB blocks, streamed (files of any size) ;
    • detection of truncated or modified files, or files whose blocks have been reordered.
  • Format specification: docs/FORMAT.md, with test vector test/fixtures/vector-v1.json.
  • Tests (node:test), including an independent reference implementation written from the specification.
  • SECURITY.md: guarantees, limitations, and vulnerability reporting.

0.1.0 - 2026-09-27 ​

Added ​

  • Project initialization: package.json, MIT license, README, .editorconfig, .gitignore.

Source of this page: CHANGELOG.md

Released under the MIT license.

© Pierre Ebele