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I've never used PGP before so my logic may be a bit off.
When receiving an email encrypted with my public key, would it not be best to unplug or disconnect my computer's internet before decrypting with my private key? That way there can be no chance of my private key being stolen?
I assume we want a deterrent against software-only attacks targeting the passphrase, unauthorized use of the private key to decipher or sign, or unauthorized access to deciphered data (including emails).
It would be effective to:
But without 2/4/5, disconnecting from the internet is only mildly effective. In particular, a software keyloger targeting the passphrase, or malware keeping track of deciphered data, has a fair chance to do its thing then exfiltrate the result after 6.
Problem is, 2/4/5 is a pain.
One reasonable option is to perform 1/3 in a Virtual Machine, and destroy it afterwards (or equivalently, restore a snapshot made before 1).
Booting on a live CD (assumed malware-free) is a nice option, but since there is no Windows live CD AFAIK, this won't accomplish much of what a Windows user want to do if HD storage is encrypted, or data (like emails) in a Windows-only format (Outlook..). The only reason I see to disconnect from the internet on top of that is to prevent exploitation of a vulnerability on the live CD.
