Three main types of encryption

From the Greek word meaning ‘hidden writing’ encryption The science of obfuscating transmitted information so that it can only be read by the intended recipient. The applications of encryption are endless. From everyday end-to-end message authentication on WhatsApp to practical digital signatures on legal forms or CPU-consuming cryptos used for mining. cryptocurrencyEncryption has become an essential and important aspect of the digital world. cyber security Components for protecting sensitive data from hackers and other cybercriminals.

The practice of cryptography dates back to ancient times. One of the earliest examples is said to have been created by Julius Caesar himself. Modern password systems are much more advanced, but still work in a similar way. Most cryptographic systems start with an unencrypted message known as plaintext. encrypted It uses one or more encryption keys to transform it into an indecipherable code called ciphertext. This ciphertext is then sent to the recipient. If the ciphertext is intercepted and the encryption algorithm is strong, the ciphertext is useless to an unauthorized eavesdropper because the code cannot be decrypted. However, the intended recipient can easily decrypt the text, assuming they have the correct decryption key.

Before we dig deeper, let’s take a look at the core features of a strong cryptographic framework.

• Confidentiality: encrypted Information is accessible only to those for whom it is intended and no one else.
• verity: Encrypted information cannot be modified at rest or during transmission between sender and intended recipient without changes being detected.
• Non-repudiation: The originator/sender of encrypted information cannot opt ​​out of transmitting the information.
• proof: The identities of the sender and recipient are verified, as well as the source and destination of the information.
• Key Management: The keys used to encrypt and decrypt data (and related operations such as key length, distribution, generation, rotation, etc.) remain secure.

Three Categories of Cryptography

Although hybrid systems such as the SSL Internet Protocol exist, most encryption technologies fall into one of three main categories: Symmetric encryption algorithmAsymmetric encryption algorithm or hash function.

Symmetric key encryption

Symmetric key encryption, also known as private key encryption, secret key encryption, or single key encryption, uses only one key for both the encryption and decryption processes. This type of system requires that each user has access to the same private key. Private keys may be shared over a previously established secure communication channel, such as a private courier or secure line, or, more practically, through a secure key exchange method such as a Diffie-Hellman key agreement.

There are two types of symmetric key algorithms:

• Block Cipher: In block ciphers, the cryptographic algorithm operates on fixed-sized blocks of data. For example, a block size of 8 encrypts 8 bytes of plaintext at a time. Typically, the user interface for encryption/decryption operations processes data longer than the block size by repeatedly calling low-level encryption functions.
• Stream Cipher: Stream ciphers do not operate in blocks, but convert one bit (or one byte) of data at a time. By default, stream ciphers generate a keystream based on the provided key. The generated keystream is XORed with plain text data.

Some examples of symmetric encryption include:

• Which of the following: Data encryption standards (of) was developed by IBM in the early 1970s, and although it is now considered vulnerable to brute force attacks, its architecture remains highly influential in modern cryptography.
• Triple DES: Advances in computing made DES unstable by 1999, but the DES encryption system, built on the original DES foundation, adds an additional level of security that modern systems cannot break.
• Blowfish: It is a fast, free, and publicly available block cipher designed by Bruce Schneer in 1993.
• AES: Advanced encryption standards (AES) is the first and only publicly accessible cipher approved by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) for top secret information.

Asymmetric key encryption

Asymmetric encryption uses a pair of keys: one private key and one public key. For this reason, these algorithms are also called public key algorithms (PKA). Public key encryption is generally considered more secure than symmetric encryption techniques. This is because, even if one key is publicly available, an encrypted message can only be decrypted with the private key of the intended recipient.

Some examples of asymmetric encryption include:

• RSA: The RSA algorithm, named after its founders Rivest, Shamier, and Adleman in 1977, is one of the oldest and most widely used public key cryptography systems used for secure data transmission.
• ECC: Elliptic curve cryptography is an advanced form of asymmetric encryption that uses the algebraic structure of elliptic curves to generate extremely strong encryption keys.

One-way hash algorithm

Cryptographic hash algorithms produce a fixed-length output string (often called a digest) from a variable-length input string. The input serves as plaintext and the output hash is the password. For all practical purposes, the following description applies to any good hash function.

• Collision avoidance: If any part of the data is modified, another hash is created to ensure data integrity.
• One-way: This feature is irreversible. That is, given a digest, it is impossible to find the data that produces it. data security.

For this reason, hash algorithms make for very effective encryption systems because they directly encrypt data without the need for another key. Essentially, plain text is its own key.

Consider the security vulnerabilities in your database of stored bank account passwords. Anyone with authorized or unauthorized access to your bank’s computer systems can potentially read all passwords. To maintain data security, banks and other businesses encrypt sensitive information, such as passwords, with hash values ​​and store only those encrypted values ​​in their databases. The hash cannot be cracked without knowing the user’s password.

The Future of Cryptography

quantum cryptography

Increasingly sophisticated to keep pace with advancing technology cyber attackThe field of cryptography continues to evolve. quantum cryptography, or quantum cryptography, refers to the applied science of securely encrypting and transmitting data based on naturally occurring and immutable laws of quantum mechanics for use in cybersecurity. Although still in its infancy, quantum encryption is much more secure than previous types of encryption algorithms and could theoretically be unhackable.

post quantum cryptography

Not to be confused with quantum cryptography, which relies on the natural laws of physics to create a secure cryptographic system, post-quantum cryptography algorithms use various types of mathematical cryptography to generate quantum computer-proof cryptography. Although not yet feasible, quantum computing It is a rapidly developing field of computer science that has the potential to increase processing power exponentially, dwarfing even the fastest supercomputers operating today. Although still theoretical, the prototype demonstrates that practical quantum computers can be expected to be able to break even the most secure public key cryptography systems within the next 10 to 50 years.

According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST): (Link external to ibm.com), The goal of PQC (also known as quantum-resistant or quantum-safe cryptography) is “to develop cryptographic systems that are secure for both quantum and classical computers” and that interoperate with existing communication protocols and networks. “This is possible.”

The six main areas of quantum-safe cryptography are:

• Lattice-based encryption
• Multivariate encryption
• Hash-based encryption
• Code-based encryption
• Identity-based encryption
• Symmetric Key Quantum Resistance

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