NearSeal is a free, browser-based file encryption tool: lock any file with a passphrase, entirely on your own device. Choose the fast native NearSeal format (AES-256-GCM), or the open age-encryption.org standard so any age-compatible tool can decrypt the file later — not just NearSeal. Decryption works the same way: drop a sealed file back on the page and its format is recognized automatically. Your file and passphrase are never uploaded to a server.
NearSeal is built and run by one independent developer — the same person behind every tool in the Near family — not by a company with a sales team or a data department. It exists because the usual answers to “how do I password-protect this file?” kept being either weak (legacy ZIP passwords) or invasive (upload your file to a stranger’s server). A tool this small can afford the promise a bigger business model couldn’t: your files are never seen, collected, or monetized.
Because all encryption runs on your device, our servers do close to nothing — they hand out a static page and never touch a file, so serving one more visitor costs almost nothing. The running costs are covered by ads that load only after you consent, and by clearly labeled affiliate links. Neither involves your files, and if you reject the ads, every feature keeps working exactly the same.
NearSeal is one of six single-purpose Near tools built on the same principle — your files stay near you: NearPDF (PDF tools), NearIMG (image tools), NearScrub (metadata removal), NearBG (image background removal), NearVid (trim and convert video), and NearSeal (file encryption). Each does one job, entirely in your browser.
There is no account, no sign-up, and no file storage. The site is static, and its strict Content-Security-Policy — a rule your own browser enforces — technically blocks the page from sending your file or passphrase anywhere. The honest flip side: there is no password recovery, no key escrow, and no cloud copy. If you lose the passphrase, nobody — including us — can open the file.
Questions, bug reports, feedback: the contact page, or contact@nearseal.com. For security vulnerability reports, see /.well-known/security.txt.