How to open a pass store on your phone.

Read your existing pass (password-store) entries on iOS or Android with PGPony — browse the folder tree, decrypt on-device behind a biometric gate, hardware-key-backed where the entry is encrypted to a card. Read-only, by design.

~3 minutes iOS / Android Read-only
// at a glance
  1. Get your store onto the device
  2. Make sure your key is in PGPony
  3. Enable the pass viewer in Settings
  4. Point it at the store directory
  5. Browse and decrypt entries
Prerequisites
  • PGPony installed
  • An existing pass store (a directory of .gpg files)
  • The PGP key your entries are encrypted to, imported into PGPony or held on a paired card
// step 01

Get your pass store onto the device.

PGPony reads a store that's already on (or reachable from) the phone. Use whatever method you prefer: a synced folder, a Git clone you keep on the device, or a copy into iOS Files / an Android folder. PGPony doesn't sync the store for you — that stays in your control.

// step 02

Make sure your key is available.

pass entries are encrypted to a PGP key. Confirm that key is in your PGPony keyring (for software decryption) or on a paired OpenPGP smartcard (for hardware-backed decryption). Without the matching secret key, the entries can't be read — by you or anyone.

// step 03

Enable the pass viewer.

In PGPony Settings, turn on the pass viewer (it's opt-in), then point it at your store directory. On Android you'll pick the folder through the system folder picker; on iOS you'll grant access through the Files integration. PGPony reads the .gpg files in place.

// step 04

Browse the folder tree.

Your store opens as the folder tree you already know — email/, banking/, and so on. Navigate to the entry you want.

// step 05

Decrypt an entry.

Tap an entry to decrypt it. PGPony gates the reveal behind biometrics, and the screen is marked secure so it won't show in the app switcher. If the entry is encrypted to a card, you'll tap the card over NFC to decrypt. Copying a value starts the auto-clearing clipboard countdown.

Remember The viewer is read-only. To change a password, edit it in your usual pass tooling; PGPony will show the updated value next time you open the entry.

Verify it worked.

  • The folder tree matches your desktop pass store.
  • Tapping an entry reveals the decrypted contents after the biometric prompt.
  • No add / edit / delete controls appear — read-only is expected.
  • Card-encrypted entries prompt for an NFC tap to decrypt.

Common questions.

Can PGPony edit or add entries?

No — it's read-only on both platforms. Editing stays in your dedicated pass tooling.

Does it upload my store?

No. Entries are read in place and decrypted locally. Nothing leaves the device.

Can a hardware key decrypt entries?

Yes. Entries encrypted to a card key decrypt over NFC.

Is this iOS-only?

No — both iOS and Android. The store-picker step differs slightly per platform.

Next steps.

Get PGPony

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