pkcs11-helper ☆

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Description:
Library to simplify the interaction with PKCS#11

Type: Formula | Tracked Since: Dec 28, 2025

Links: Homepage | formulae.brew.sh

Category: Security

Tags: cryptography pkcs11 security library smartcard hsm

Install: brew install pkcs11-helper

About:
pkcs11-helper is a library designed to simplify the interaction with PKCS#11 interfaces for hardware security modules and smart cards. It provides a high-level abstraction layer, allowing applications to easily discover and utilize PKCS#11 tokens without complex configuration. This streamlines the integration of strong cryptography into applications using hardware-based key storage.

Key Features:

Simplified PKCS#11 API for easier application integration
Automatic discovery and management of PKCS#11 modules
Support for multiple concurrent tokens and slots
Configuration abstraction to handle module paths and parameters

Use Cases:

Integrating smart card authentication into client applications
Managing keys for VPNs or SSL/TLS connections using HSMs
Developing secure applications that require hardware-backed cryptographic operations

Alternatives:

OpenSC – OpenSC provides the actual PKCS#11 middleware and drivers, whereas pkcs11-helper is a library to help applications consume those drivers easily.

Version History

Detected	Version	Rev	Change	Commit
Sep 11, 2025 12:12am		0	VERSION_BUMP	d9b99584
Oct 26, 2024 9:51pm		0	VERSION_BUMP	8d5c75be