Web Crypto API#

Stability: 2 - Stable

Node.js provides an implementation of the standard Web Crypto API.

Use globalThis.crypto or require('node:crypto').webcrypto to access this module.

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

(async function() {

  const key = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'HMAC',
    hash: 'SHA-256',
    length: 256,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  const enc = new TextEncoder();
  const message = enc.encode('I love cupcakes');

  const digest = await subtle.sign({
    name: 'HMAC',
  }, key, message);

})(); 

Examples#

Generating keys#

The <SubtleCrypto> class can be used to generate symmetric (secret) keys or asymmetric key pairs (public key and private key).

AES keys#
const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateAesKey(length = 256) {
  const key = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'AES-CBC',
    length,
  }, true, ['encrypt', 'decrypt']);

  return key;
} 
ECDSA key pairs#
const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateEcKey(namedCurve = 'P-521') {
  const {
    publicKey,
    privateKey,
  } = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'ECDSA',
    namedCurve,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  return { publicKey, privateKey };
} 
Ed25519/X25519 key pairs#
const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateEd25519Key() {
  return subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'Ed25519',
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);
}

async function generateX25519Key() {
  return subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'X25519',
  }, true, ['deriveKey']);
} 
HMAC keys#
const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateHmacKey(hash = 'SHA-256') {
  const key = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'HMAC',
    hash,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  return key;
} 
RSA key pairs#
const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;
const publicExponent = new Uint8Array([1, 0, 1]);

async function generateRsaKey(modulusLength = 2048, hash = 'SHA-256') {
  const {
    publicKey,
    privateKey,
  } = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5',
    modulusLength,
    publicExponent,
    hash,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  return { publicKey, privateKey };
} 

Encryption and decryption#

const crypto = globalThis.crypto;

async function aesEncrypt(plaintext) {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const key = await generateAesKey();
  const iv = crypto.getRandomValues(new Uint8Array(16));

  const ciphertext = await crypto.subtle.encrypt({
    name: 'AES-CBC',
    iv,
  }, key, ec.encode(plaintext));

  return {
    key,
    iv,
    ciphertext,
  };
}

async function aesDecrypt(ciphertext, key, iv) {
  const dec = new TextDecoder();
  const plaintext = await crypto.subtle.decrypt({
    name: 'AES-CBC',
    iv,
  }, key, ciphertext);

  return dec.decode(plaintext);
} 

Exporting and importing keys#

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateAndExportHmacKey(format = 'jwk', hash = 'SHA-512') {
  const key = await subtle.generateKey({
    name: 'HMAC',
    hash,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  return subtle.exportKey(format, key);
}

async function importHmacKey(keyData, format = 'jwk', hash = 'SHA-512') {
  const key = await subtle.importKey(format, keyData, {
    name: 'HMAC',
    hash,
  }, true, ['sign', 'verify']);

  return key;
} 

Wrapping and unwrapping keys#

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function generateAndWrapHmacKey(format = 'jwk', hash = 'SHA-512') {
  const [
    key,
    wrappingKey,
  ] = await Promise.all([
    subtle.generateKey({
      name: 'HMAC', hash,
    }, true, ['sign', 'verify']),
    subtle.generateKey({
      name: 'AES-KW',
      length: 256,
    }, true, ['wrapKey', 'unwrapKey']),
  ]);

  const wrappedKey = await subtle.wrapKey(format, key, wrappingKey, 'AES-KW');

  return { wrappedKey, wrappingKey };
}

async function unwrapHmacKey(
  wrappedKey,
  wrappingKey,
  format = 'jwk',
  hash = 'SHA-512') {

  const key = await subtle.unwrapKey(
    format,
    wrappedKey,
    wrappingKey,
    'AES-KW',
    { name: 'HMAC', hash },
    true,
    ['sign', 'verify']);

  return key;
} 

Sign and verify#

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function sign(key, data) {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const signature =
    await subtle.sign('RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5', key, ec.encode(data));
  return signature;
}

async function verify(key, signature, data) {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const verified =
    await subtle.verify(
      'RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5',
      key,
      signature,
      ec.encode(data));
  return verified;
} 

Deriving bits and keys#

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function pbkdf2(pass, salt, iterations = 1000, length = 256) {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const key = await subtle.importKey(
    'raw',
    ec.encode(pass),
    'PBKDF2',
    false,
    ['deriveBits']);
  const bits = await subtle.deriveBits({
    name: 'PBKDF2',
    hash: 'SHA-512',
    salt: ec.encode(salt),
    iterations,
  }, key, length);
  return bits;
}

async function pbkdf2Key(pass, salt, iterations = 1000, length = 256) {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const keyMaterial = await subtle.importKey(
    'raw',
    ec.encode(pass),
    'PBKDF2',
    false,
    ['deriveKey']);
  const key = await subtle.deriveKey({
    name: 'PBKDF2',
    hash: 'SHA-512',
    salt: ec.encode(salt),
    iterations,
  }, keyMaterial, {
    name: 'AES-GCM',
    length,
  }, true, ['encrypt', 'decrypt']);
  return key;
} 

Digest#

const { subtle } = globalThis.crypto;

async function digest(data, algorithm = 'SHA-512') {
  const ec = new TextEncoder();
  const digest = await subtle.digest(algorithm, ec.encode(data));
  return digest;
} 

Algorithm matrix#

The table details the algorithms supported by the Node.js Web Crypto API implementation and the APIs supported for each:

AlgorithmgenerateKeyexportKeyimportKeyencryptdecryptwrapKeyunwrapKeyderiveBitsderiveKeysignverifydigest
'RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5'
'RSA-PSS'
'RSA-OAEP'
'ECDSA'
'Ed25519'
'Ed448' 1
'ECDH'
'X25519'
'X448' 1
'AES-CTR'
'AES-CBC'
'AES-GCM'
'AES-KW'
'HMAC'
'HKDF'
'PBKDF2'
'SHA-1'
'SHA-256'
'SHA-384'
'SHA-512'

Class: Crypto#

globalThis.crypto is an instance of the Crypto class. Crypto is a singleton that provides access to the remainder of the crypto API.

crypto.subtle#

Provides access to the SubtleCrypto API.

crypto.getRandomValues(typedArray)#