What is Encryption?
· is one of the most popular and
effective data security methods used by organizations. Two main types of data
encryption exist - asymmetric encryption, also known as public-key encryption,
and symmetric encryption.
2. Discuss the process of
data encryption.
·
Translates data into another
form, or code, so that only people with access to a secret key (formally called
a decryption key) or password can read it. Encrypted data is commonly referred
to as ciphertext, while unencrypted data is called plaintext.
Discuss the types of Data
Encryption.
a.
Symmetric Key Encryption
o
is much faster than asymmetric
encryption, the sender must exchange the encryption key with the recipient
before he can decrypt it.
o
Symmetric-key algorithms are
algorithms for cryptography that use the same cryptographic keys for both the
encryption of plaintext and the decryption of ciphertext.
o
Symmetric encryption is an old
and best-known technique. It uses a secret key that can either be a number, a
word or a string of random letters. It is a blended with the plain text of a
message to change the content in a particular way. The sender and the recipient
should know the secret key that is used to encrypt and decrypt all the
messages. Blowfish, AES, RC4, DES, RC5, and RC6 are examples of symmetric
encryption. The most widely used symmetric algorithm is AES-128, AES-192, and
AES-256.
b.
Asymmetric Key Encryption
o
Asymmetric encryption is also
known as public key cryptography, which is a relatively new method, compared to
symmetric encryption.
o
Asymmetric encryption uses two
keys to encrypt a plain text. Secret keys are exchanged over the Internet or a
large network. It ensures that malicious persons do not misuse the keys.
o
It is important to note that
anyone with a secret key can decrypt the message and this is why asymmetric
encryption uses two related keys to boosting security. A public key is
made freely available to anyone who might want to send you a message. The
second private key is kept a secret so that you can only know.
