Not a valid PGP SEA file.

[Norm X]

Hi,

When I Google the error in the subject line (with quotes) I get a listing of
a Microsoft module. Logical, it is compiled for Windows. When I invoke it in
either GUI WinXP or DOS, I get the same error code. However, the program
worked once and I used it for a while. It worked fine but I didn't want to
use it upfront. I am now trying to reinstall it on a virtual WinXP. I am shy
on money and it is a commercial product. The last time it worked was in the
2008-2009 time frame. Dare I turn back the WinXP clock so I can make it
install like it did last decade?

Honestly, I am shy to be connected with PGP.

Thanks.

[Paul]

One suggestion, is to test with a smaller file to begin with.

Might this be a PGP SDA file ? SEA tends to stand for
Self Extracting Archive, which is very close in concept
to the SDA idea.

https://support.symantec.com/en_US/article.TECH190654.html

"...Self Decrypting Archive"

"This is not a valid Win32 executable"

"Applies To

Windows 32 bit using
PGP Desktop / Symantec Encryption Desktop or
PGP Command Line with large PGP SDA files > 4GB."

Apparently, a file with an EXE extension cannot exceed 4GB
in size on a 32-bit OS. I would never have thought of making
one quite that large :-)

*******

The suggestion at the end here, is intriguing.

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/13960544/how-can-i-decrypt-a-pgp-self-decrypting-archive-programatically

"PGP self-decrypting archives is just EXE stub + PGP message
inside of this file. You should parse EXE headers, and found
where this data is stored, extract it, and decrypt using GnuPG
or any other PGP library."

The command line for this, could well have a ton of options.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnupg

There is a Gpg4win package, but it hides the command
line stuff with a GUI. It would be better to just
have the command line program plus "user manual",
and the tarball on the GNUPG page might be
better for such a purpose. If the package
was pre-compiled in Cygwin, so much the better.

Paul

[Norm X]

Yes Paul, it is a self extracting archive for the installer. And thank you
for the helpful links.

I unrared the package years ago. I have the installer and PDF files for
documentation. The name is PGPDesktop981. I googled and found it could be
downloaded from China. But their filesize is 30 MB while mine is only 2+ MB.
Maybe the cost of Unicode. I also found out the most popular OS in China is
WinXP. Surprise, surprise.

I've used 7zip to examine the internals And the subject line can be found in
a 'text' file. But otherwise 7zip is useless. PGP has put a time bomb inside
their code. But how do people in China install PGPDesktop981.exe? Win98?

I tried turning off the VM eth0: no effect. Maybe turning back the clock
would work

[Norm X]

[snippage]

>>
>> Paul
>
> Yes Paul, it is a self extracting archive for the installer. And thank you
> for the helpful links.
>
> I unrared the package years ago. I have the installer and PDF files for
> documentation. The name is PGPDesktop981. I googled and found it could be
> downloaded from China. But their filesize is 30 MB while mine is only 2+
> MB. Maybe the cost of Unicode. I also found out the most popular OS in
> China is WinXP. Surprise, surprise.
>
> I've used 7zip to examine the internals And the subject line can be found
> in a 'text' file. But otherwise 7zip is useless. PGP has put a time bomb
> inside their code. But how do people in China install PGPDesktop981.exe?
> Win98?
>
> I tried turning off the VM eth0: no effect. Maybe turning back the clock
> would work
>

Turning back the clock is a trivial exercise. But it does not alter dates
associated with file. It looks like a job for bittorent to recover
PGPDesktop98.exe

[Norm X]

Everyone is paranoid. Translation of Chinese download page: 4, this station
and the police closely, the release of illegal resources to zero tolerance.

Then there is the message that it cannot be downloaded over an insecure
connection. Looks like a job for Torr.

[Norm X]

>> Turning back the clock is a trivial exercise. But it does not alter dates
>> associated with file. It looks like a job for bittorent to recover
>> PGPDesktop98.exe
>>
>
> Everyone is paranoid. Translation of Chinese download page: 4, this
> station and the police closely, the release of illegal resources to zero
> tolerance.
>
> Then there is the message that it cannot be downloaded over an insecure

> connection. Looks like a job for Tor.

The optimal solution may be to forget commercial software from the past but
to use free GNU based Thunderbird. But at this point I have not used PGP key
for respondent. Only a test.

[Norm X]

>> Everyone is paranoid. Translation of Chinese download page: 4, this
>> station and the police closely, the release of illegal resources to zero
>> tolerance.
>>
>> Then there is the message that it cannot be downloaded over an insecure
>> connection. Looks like a job for Tor.
>
> The optimal solution may be to forget commercial software from the past
> but to use free GNU based Thunderbird. But at this point I have not used
> PGP key for respondent. Only a test.
>

Current PGP technology relies on a "ring of trust". PGP981 was easier.
Thunderbird assumes trust of all to whom encrypted email is sent and no
trust otherwise. One corruption destroys ring of trust. Go figure.

[Norm X]

> Current PGP technology relies on a "ring of trust". PGP981 was easier.
> Thunderbird assumes trust of all to whom encrypted email is sent and no
> trust otherwise. One corruption destroys ring of trust. Go figure.

This is nothing but an implementation of the Great Firewall of China. PGP
may protect one's email from the prying eyes of your ISP, the NSA or the
Peoples Liberation Army unit 61398, but what good is that? Talk weird and no
one understands, encrypted or not.

[Norm X]

> Talk weird and no
> one understands, encrypted or not.

Decrypt this:

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Version: GnuPG v2

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=PlGH
-----END PGP MESSAGE-----