OPENSSL-SPKAC(1ossl)

📦
version 15.1 · 2 versions
, in freebsd 15.1

💖 NAME 💖

okay bestie, this is openssl-spkac(1ossl) from OpenSSL — the SPKAC printing and generating command. That's the manual name, that's the vibe, and yes we're doing the whole thing. 💅

✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

openssl spkac [-help] [-in filename] [-out filename] [-digest digest]
[-key filename|uri] [-keyform DER|PEM|P12|ENGINE] [-passin arg]
[-challenge string] [-pubkey] [-spkac spkacname] [-spksect section]
[-noout] [-verify] [-engine id] [-provider name] [-provider-path path]
[-provparam [name:]key=value] [-propquery propq]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

okay so this command processes Netscape signed public key and challenge (SPKAC) files. It can print out their contents, verify the signature, and produce its own SPKACs from a supplied private key. That's the whole flex, periodt. ✨

💅 OPTIONS 💅

  • -help — prints out a usage message.
  • -in filename — specifies the input filename to read from, or standard input if this option is not specified. It's ignored if the -key option is used.
  • -out filename — specifies the output filename to write to, or standard output by default.
  • -digest digest — use the specified digest to sign a created SPKAC file. The default digest algorithm is MD5. (Yes, MD5 — that's what the page says, bestie.)
  • -key filename|uri — create an SPKAC file using the private key specified by filename or uri. The -in, -noout, -spksect and -verify options are ignored if present.
  • -keyform DER|PEM|P12|ENGINE — the key format; unspecified by default. See openssl-format-options(1) for details.
  • -passin arg — the input file password source. For more info about the format of arg, see openssl-passphrase-options(1).
  • -challenge string — specifies the challenge string if an SPKAC is being created.
  • -spkac spkacname — lets you use an alternative name for the variable containing the SPKAC. The default is "SPKAC". This option affects both generated and input SPKAC files.
  • -spksect section — lets you use an alternative name for the section containing the SPKAC. The default is the default section.
  • -noout — don't output the text version of the SPKAC (not used if an SPKAC is being created).
  • -pubkey — output the public key of an SPKAC (not used if an SPKAC is being created).
  • -verify — verifies the digital signature on the supplied SPKAC.
  • -engine id — see "Engine Options" in openssl(1). This option is deprecated.
  • -provider name — see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), provider(7), and property(7).
  • -provider-path path — see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), provider(7), and property(7).
  • -provparam [name:]key=value — see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), provider(7), and property(7).
  • -propquery propq — see "Provider Options" in openssl(1), provider(7), and property(7).

🎀 EXAMPLES 🎀

Print out the contents of an SPKAC:

openssl spkac -in spkac.cnf

Verify the signature of an SPKAC:

openssl spkac -in spkac.cnf -noout -verify

Create an SPKAC using the challenge string "hello":

openssl spkac -key key.pem -challenge hello -out spkac.cnf

Example of an SPKAC, (long lines split up for clarity):

SPKAC=MIG5MGUwXDANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQEFAANLADBIAkEA\
1cCoq2Wa3Ixs47uI7FPVwHVIPDx5yso105Y6zpozam135a\
8R0CpoRvkkigIyXfcCjiVi5oWk+6FfPaD03uPFoQIDAQAB\
FgVoZWxsbzANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQQFAANBAFpQtY/FojdwkJ\
h1bEIYuc2EeM2KHTWPEepWYeawvHD0gQ3DngSC75YCWnnD\
dq+NQ3F+X4deMx9AaEglZtULwV4=

🌈 NOTES 🌈

A created SPKAC with suitable DN components appended can be fed to openssl-ca(1). 🫶

SPKACs are typically generated by Netscape when a form is submitted containing the KEYGEN tag as part of the certificate enrollment process.

The challenge string permits a primitive form of proof of possession of private key. By checking the SPKAC signature and a random challenge string some guarantee is given that the user knows the private key corresponding to the public key being certified. This is important in some applications. Without this it is possible for a previous SPKAC to be used in a "replay attack". 🚨

🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

openssl(1), openssl-ca(1)

⭐ HISTORY ⭐

  • The -engine option was deprecated in OpenSSL 3.0.
  • The -digest option was added in OpenSSL 3.0.

Copyright 2000-2021 The OpenSSL Project Authors. All Rights Reserved.

Licensed under the Apache License 2.0 (the "License"). You may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You can obtain a copy in the file LICENSE in the source distribution or at <https://www.openssl.org/source/license.html>.

This page is from OpenSSL 3.5.6, dated 2026-04-07, and its manual name is OPENSSL-SPKAC(1ossl) — mwah, bestie 💋💖

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