Seamless client-side encryption for Workflowy
Workflowy Encrypter is an open-source, simple browser extension providing client-side encryption for Workflowy. It encrypts all data locally on your device, meaning no data is sent to a remote server. To keep Workflowy's simplicity, the extension only provides minimal interfaces styled with Workflowy's native styling. While it is designed to be minimal and seamless from the user's perspective, it ensures that all text-based content sent to Workflowy servers is encrypted with AES standards so that your sensitive content can only be read by you.
After installing the extension via Chrome Web Store, follow the steps below to get started:
- Visit workflowy.com and follow the on-screen instructions to set up your encryption key.
- Add a
#privatetag to any node you want to secure. All sub-nodes of the selected node, including the ones you will add later, will be encrypted automatically.
And that's it! Encrypted nodes will be readable only from web browsers that have Workflowy Encrypter installed. Try to use a different device or disable the extension temporarily to see the magic!
Here are some screenshots to better understand the extension's functionality and interfaces. Extension interfaces are styled with Workflowy's native styling, as seen in the decryption confirmation popup below. (For further information, this popup appears when you delete a #private tag to ensure it has not been deleted by mistake.)
For a given sample data, the view seen from the client side is as given below:
For the same data, the following image shows what is seen from the server side:
And here is a GIF showing how your data is encrypted in real-time:
If you prefer to install from the source code instead of the Chrome Web Store, follow the steps below to perform a manual installation. The extension is built for Chromium-based browsers; other browsers are not currently supported.
- Download and extract the extension files.
- Visit your browser's extensions page. (chrome://extensions for Google Chrome, edge://extensions for Microsoft Edge)
- Enable developer mode.
- Click on "Load unpacked."
- Select the folder containing extension files.
Workflowy Encrypter does not collect data from any user; there is not even a remote server dedicated to this extension. All processing is done locally on your device and shared with neither the developer nor any third parties.
As this is a third-party extension, full compatibility of the extension with the Workflowy website is not the case, and bugs may still be encountered. In those cases, simply force-reload the page by pressing Ctrl+Shift+R on Windows and Command+Shift+R on Mac. If the issue persists, do not hesitate to contact me, open an issue here on GitHub, or better yet, open a pull request if you are a developer. Contributions are much appreciated!
- [Feature] Tracking encrypted nodes and warning if #private tag of any of them has been removed via a remote session.
- [Feature] File encryption.
All collaborators are welcome to contribute to the project in any constructive way as long as they comply with the code of conduct.
This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE for details.
Have something on your mind? I would be happy to hear from you! Feel free to shoot me an email or drop a message on social media for any questions, suggestions, or just to say hi :)