Reset the passphrase for PGP Keys

Products

• Symantec Products

Issue/Introduction

This article details how to reset the passphrase of a PGP key. Passphrase recovery is available in PGP Desktop 9.7 and above.

Resolution

This article describes the steps to reset the passphrase of your PGP Key using PGP Desktop. Beginning with version 9.7, PGP Desktop has a new feature which allows the user to reset the passphrase of a PGP key.

During the PGP Key Generation Assistant, you are prompted after entering the passphrase for your key to create 5 Security Questions for Key Reconstruction. You must enter an answer of at least 6 characters for each question. PGP Desktop requires you to successfully answer 3 of the 5 Security Questions for Key Reconstruction.

Use the following steps to reset the passphrase of your PGP Key.

1. In PGP Desktop, click the PGP Keys Control box.
2. Select Keys>I Forgot My Passphrase. The PGP Passphrase Assistant: Answer Security Questions dialog box is displayed.
3. Answer three of the five security questions correctly and click Next. The PGP Passphrase Assistant: Success dialog box is displayed.
4. Click Next. to continue with creating a new passphrase. The PGP Passphrase Assistant: Create Passphrase dialog box is displayed.
5. Enter and re-enter your passphrase.
6. Click Finish. Your passphrase has been reset.