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Cosign

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Code signing and transparency for containers and binaries using Sigstore.

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Tracked since2026
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The Bottom Line

Entry price

Free, no paid tier

Biggest pro

Increases trust and integrity of software artifacts

Biggest con

Requires understanding of OCI registries and signing concepts

TL;DR - Cosign

  • Simplifies code signing for containers and binaries.
  • Utilizes Sigstore's keyless signing and transparency logs.
  • Enhances software supply chain security and integrity.
Pricing: Free forever
Best for: Individuals & startups

What is Cosign?

Editorial review
Cosign is an open-source tool developed as part of the Sigstore project, designed to simplify code signing and enhance transparency for containers and other software artifacts. It aims to make signatures an invisible part of the infrastructure, providing developers with a straightforward way to sign and verify their software. Cosign supports various signing methods, including "Keyless signing" with the Sigstore public good Fulcio certificate authority and Rekor transparency log, hardware and KMS signing, and signing with Cosign-generated encrypted keypairs. It facilitates container signing, verification, and storage within an OCI registry, and also allows users to bring their own Public Key Infrastructure (PKI). This tool is crucial for developers and organizations looking to secure their software supply chain by ensuring the authenticity and integrity of their deployed artifacts. By integrating with Sigstore's transparency logs, Cosign provides an immutable record of signing events, making it difficult for malicious actors to tamper with software without detection. Its ease of use, especially with the default keyless signing, lowers the barrier to entry for robust software supply chain security practices.

Available on: Linux, macOS

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Increases trust and integrity of software artifacts
  • Simplifies complex code signing processes with keyless signing
  • Provides transparency through public logs
  • Supports multiple signing methods for flexibility
  • Open-source and community-driven

Cons

  • Requires understanding of OCI registries and signing concepts
  • Personally identifiable information may be stored in public transparency logs during keyless signing
  • Newer versions may focus development on sigstore-go, potentially impacting feature velocity for Cosign 2.x

Key Features

Keyless signing with Sigstore Fulcio CA and Rekor transparency logHardware and KMS signing supportSigning with Cosign-generated encrypted private/public keypairsContainer signing, verification, and storage in OCI registriesBring-your-own PKI supportIntegration with public transparency logs for immutable recordsCommand-line interface for signing and verification

Pricing Plans

Open Source

Free

  • Full source code access
  • Apache License 2.0 license
  • Community support
  • Self-hosted

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Cosign FAQ

What is Cosign?

Cosign is an open-source tool that provides code signing and transparency for containers and binaries. It is part of the Sigstore project and aims to simplify the process of signing and verifying software artifacts to enhance supply chain security.

How much does Cosign cost?

Cosign is an open-source project released under the Apache-2.0 license, making it free to use.

Is Cosign free?

Yes, Cosign is completely free as it is an open-source project.

Who is Cosign for?

Cosign is for developers, DevOps engineers, and organizations that need to secure their software supply chain by signing and verifying container images and other binaries to ensure their authenticity and integrity.

Source: github.com

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