Re: mode-line icon for encrypted file

[Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>]

> From: Colin Baxter <m43cap@yandex.com>
> Cc: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org
> Date: Sat, 04 May 2024 08:00:45 +0100
> 
> >>>>> Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org> writes:
> 
>     > It sounds like this depends on how gpg prompts for the pass
>     > phrase.  On my system, it pops up a GUI dialog, but on yours it
>     > prompts via Emacs, and that's why the icon appears in your case.
> 
> That makes sense. I have pinentry-mode set to loopback since I don't
> like the popup password box and prefer everything in emacs. If it's a
> choice between a popup box and a mode-line icon then I'll stick with the
> latter.

I believe the icon is there to allow the user to display the password.
That capability is a standard part of modern UIs for entering
passwords and pass phrases, so I think it is a Good Thing that Emacs
provides that.  I won't object to be able to optionally disable it,
but I don't expect many people to want that, as it is easy to make a
typing mistake, what with today's stringent rules for "valid"
passwords, and making a mistake more than a couple of times could lock
the user out of whatever they want to unlock/decrypt.