About Digital Shell
Digital Shell is a file sharing service for law firms, accounting practices and startups that exchange contracts and sensitive documents with clients. Instead of email attachments, you upload a file and share an encrypted link protected by a 6-digit access code, with limits on views and a lifespan after which the link expires.
Each document can be watermarked with the recipient's identity, and the sender sees detailed access logs showing when and from where a link was opened. The site states AES-256 encryption and a zero-knowledge architecture, with decryption happening in the recipient's browser. It describes both a web workspace and a downloadable app, with Legal and Finance solution pages. Digital Shell is a commercial product that advertises a free-forever plan with no credit card, though the homepage also shows a waitlist call to action.
Key features
- Encrypted share links with access codes
- Watermarks that identify the recipient
- Expiring, self-destructing links
- View limits per link
- Detailed access logs for every view
- Zero-knowledge encryption claimed
Good fit for
- →Law firms sending contracts to clients
- →Accountants sharing financial reports
- Tags
- file-sharing
- encryption
- legal
- watermark
- access-logs
- zero-knowledge
- security
Digital Shell: questions and answers
- What is Digital Shell used for?
- Digital Shell is a file sharing service for legal, accounting and startup teams that uses encrypted, watermarked, trackable links with access codes, expiry and access logs. It is a good fit for law firms sending contracts to clients and accountants sharing financial reports.
- Is Digital Shell open source?
- No. Digital Shell is proprietary (closed-source) software and can't be self-hosted. In the File Storage & Sharing category, open-source options include OnionShare, MicroBin and Gokapi.
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