## page was renamed from Gpg4win/Tutorials/CertificateCreation
= Create your own key pair

//This tutorial was created for Gpg4win 4.1.0. For new versions this process may differ.//

**under construction**

=== Introduction
If you want to start with encryption it is necessary to have your own pair of keys so that you have a private and a public key. Maybe you already have one but you need to import it. Then you can follow [[Gpg4win/Tutorials/RetrievePublicKeys#file_import|this section]] as it also works with your own key pair. The other way is to create your key pair and this way is shown in this tutorial.
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Sometimes the keys are also called "certificates" which is a term coming from the encryption via S/M~IME. For many users (and especially those who are unsure) encryption via OpenP~GP is the right way. Since Gpg4win/Kleopatra can handle both the certificates and the keys are called certificates in the program.

=== Create the key pair

==== Click on "New Key Pair"
{{kleo_start_key_creation.png}}

==== Enter your name and email address and click on "OK"
{{kleo_enter_name.png}}

==== When the next window appears confirm with a click on "OK".
{{kleo_creation_success.png}}

=== Important!
A private key is a file on your system that only you or your 
Administrator may read. If you lose the key you **lose all access to your encrypted data**!

=== Next steps
* Create a [[Gpg4win/Tutorials/KeyBackup|backup]] of your key pair