The Key Server Dialog - Novell LINUX ENTERPRISE DESKTOP 11 - APPLICATION GUIDE 17-03-2009 Application Manual

10.4.2 Trusting Keys
Normally, you are asked by the corresponding program whether you trust the key, or
rather, whether you assume it is really used by its authorized owner. This happens each
time a message needs to be decrypted or a signature has to be checked. To avoid this,
edit the trust level of the newly imported key. To trust a key and set a certain trust level,
do the following:
1 Right-click the key and select Key Properties.
2 In the Owner Trust drop-down list, adjust the trust level. This value indicates
how much you trust the owner of this key to correctly verify the identity of the
keys he signs.
3 Close the property dialog. If you have set the trust level to Fully or Ultimately,
the key now appears blue in the trust column.
The lower the trust level is, the less you trust the signer of the key to have checked the
true identity of the keys signed. You may be entirely sure about the signer's identity,
but he may not check other people's identities properly before signing their keys.
Therefore, you could still trust him and his own key, but assign lower trust levels to
the keys signed by him. Notice that the trust level does not trigger any automatic actions
by KGpg.

10.5 The Key Server Dialog

Several Internet-based key servers offer the public keys of many users. To engage in
encrypted communication with a large number of users, use these servers to distribute
your public key. For this purpose, export your public key to one of these servers. Simi-
larly, KGpg enables you to search one of these servers for the keys of certain people
and import their public keys from the server. Open the key server dialog with File >
Key Server Dialog.
Encryption with KGpg 105