Four tools handle private file transfers well: OnionShare, Magic Wormhole, Croc, and Firefox Send (self-hosted). Each suits a different threat model.

OnionShare creates a temporary Tor onion service on your machine. The recipient connects through Tor Browser to download files directly from your computer. No server stores anything. Files never leave your device until the recipient downloads them. Downside - transfers are slow (Tor overhead) and both parties need Tor.

Install and share a file
pip install onionshare-cli
onionshare-cli --receive  # or share a specific file

Magic Wormhole uses a short passphrase to establish an encrypted peer-to-peer connection. Simple, fast, and the passphrase is human-readable. Files transit through a relay server but are end-to-end encrypted. The relay sees only encrypted bytes.

Sender
wormhole send secret-document.pdf
Prints - wormhole receive 7-crossover-clockwork

Receiver
wormhole receive 7-crossover-clockwork

Croc improves on Magic Wormhole with resume support, multiple files, and cross-platform binaries. Uses PAKE (password-authenticated key exchange) for encryption. Relay servers are optional and can be self-hosted.

croc send secret-document.pdf
Receiver uses the generated code
croc <code>

Send (self-hosted) is Mozilla’s discontinued Firefox Send, now maintained by the community as timvisee/send. Provides a web interface for encrypted file sharing with expiration and download limits.

For maximum anonymity, use OnionShare. For quick transfers between trusted parties, Magic Wormhole or Croc. For sharing with non-technical recipients, self-host Send.

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