Encryption : What it is? Why it is? How it is?
Encryption can be defined as the process of indoctrination of a message or a file in such a manner that only authorized parties can access it and any kind of unauthorized access cannot. It is a process of helping in protecting the personal data by using a set of keys can be alpha-numeric to scramble it so that it cannot be read by anyone who doesn’t have the key. In today’s World full of technology, all the information are managed online only It is almost impossible to do any kind of task with personal data ending up in a networked system, which is why it is vital to know how to keep data private.
Cryptographic Key
A cryptographic key is a sequence of bits that a cryptographic algorithm uses to transform plain text into cipher and vice versa. The key remains confidential and communicates safely. The center of cryptographic operations is a cryptographic key.
It can be of two types:
1. Private Key
This means that the encryption and decryption keys are the same. The two parties must have the same key before they can achieve secure communication.
2. Public Key
This means that the encryption key is published and available for anyone to use. Only the receiving party has access to the decryption key that enables them to read the message.
Why is encryption important? Why is it important to encrypt?
1. Internet privacy issues are real
Encryption helps protect privacy by converting personal information into communications “only for your ears” intended only for those parties who need it — and no one else. You should make sure that your emails are sent via an encrypted connection or that you are encrypting it.
2. Hacking is big business
Hackers aren’t just bored kids in a basement anymore. They ‘re big business, and in some cases, they ‘re multinational outfits. Large-scale data breaches that you may have heard about in the news demonstrate that people are out to steal personal information to fill their pockets. [Source: Norton]
3. Regulation’s Demand
Contingent upon your given industry or the particular approaches set out by your manager, encryption innovation for information insurance may end up required as opposed to discretionary. For instance, in the social insurance segment, persistent protection laws require keeping data scrambled. Associations get noteworthy fines for resistance.
4. Data Integrity
It is the support of, and the affirmation of the precision and consistency of, information over its whole life-cycle, and is a basic viewpoint to the structure, execution and use of any framework which stores, forms, or recovers information.
How to Encrypt?
There are many predefined, secure, good Encryption Algorithms, some of them are:
1. DES/3DES
This is an encryption calculation called Data Encryption Standard that was first utilized by the U.S. Government in the late 70’s. It is regularly utilized in ATM machines (to scramble PINs) and is used in UNIX secret key encryption. Triple DES or 3DES has supplanted the more seasoned forms as an increasingly secure strategy for encryption, as it scrambles information multiple times and uses an alternate key for in any event one of the variants.
2. AES
Advanced Encryption Standard or Rijndael; it utilizes the Rijndael square figure endorsed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). AES was started by cryptographers Joan Daemen and Vincent Rijmen and supplanted DES as the U.S. Government encryption procedure in 2000.
3. RSA Security
· RC4 is a variable key size stream figure dependent on the utilization of an irregular change.
· RC5 This is a parameterized calculation with a variable square, key size and number of rounds.
· RC6 This a development of RC5, it is additionally a parameterized calculation that has variable square, key and various rounds. This calculation has number increase and 4 piece working registers.
4. IDEA
This encryption algorithm was used in Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) Version 2 and is an optional algorithm in OpenPGP. IDEA features 64 bit blocks with a 128 bit key
A technique used to crack a cipher. Those trying to decrypt a message will study the frequency of letters or groups of letters in a ciphertext. Because some letters occure more often than others, the frequency of letters can reveals parts of the encrypted message. While this method was effective in cracking old encryption methods, it is ineffective against modern encryption.
Closing Note:
ALWAYS ENCRYT ALL THE PERSONAL DATA TO BE SAFE IN THIS EMERGING WORLD OF CYBER ATTACKS. NO ONE CAN STOP OR BE SAFE FROM CYBER ATTACKS, JUST CAN INCREASE THE COMPLEXITY FOR THE HACKER TO GET ACCESS OF DATA.
