Cryptography

What are the two types of key-based encryptions that exist?

The two main types of key-based encryptions are symmetric encryption and asymmetric encryption.

Symmetric Encryption

• Key Usage: Uses a single key for both encryption and decryption.

• Speed: Generally faster and more efficient.

• Security: The main challenge is securely sharing the key between parties.

• Examples: AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), DES (Data Encryption Standard).

Asymmetric Encryption

• Key Usage: Uses a pair of keys – a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption.

• Speed: Slower compared to symmetric encryption due to more complex computations.

• Security: More secure for key distribution since the private key is never shared.

• Examples: RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman), ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography).

Which type of encryption is considered more secure?

Both schemes are considered secure in the sense that if you are using a modern algorithm with a sufficient key length, no current computer can break the cipher.

Which type of encryption is better depends on the use case, but many use cases require asymmetric encryption, because it uses a pair of keys – a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption. The private key is kept secret, which enhances security since it never needs to be shared.

Which type of encryption is better for Bulk Data?

Symmetric Encryption, because it is faster.

What is the general process for Hybrid encryption?

1. Key Generation: The sender generates a fresh symmetric key (also known as a session key) for encrypting the actual message.

2. Message Encryption: The sender uses the symmetric key to encrypt the plaintext message, producing a ciphertext.

3. Key Encryption: The sender then encrypts the symmetric key using the recipient’s public key (asymmetric encryption).

4. Transmission: The sender sends both the encrypted message (ciphertext) and the encrypted symmetric key to the recipient.

5. Key Decryption: The recipient uses their private key to decrypt the symmetric key.

6. Message Decryption: Finally, the recipient uses the decrypted symmetric key to decrypt the ciphertext and retrieve the original plaintext.