Lecture 3. Encryption in cybersecurity
Encryption in cybersecurity
Encryption - definition and meaning
Encryption in cybersecurity is the conversion of data from a readable format to an encoded format. Encrypted data can only be read or processed after it has been decrypted.
Data encryption is widely used by both individual users and large corporations to protect user information sent between a browser and a server. This information can include everything from payment details to personal information. Data encryption software, also known as an encryption algorithm or cipher, is used to develop an encryption scheme that can theoretically only be broken with a large amount of computing power.
How does encryption work in cybersecurity?
Encryption involves converting human-readable plaintext into unintelligible text, called ciphertext. Essentially, it means that you take data that is readable and change it so that it looks random. Encryption involves the use of a cryptographic key, a set of mathematical values agreed upon between the sender and the receiver. The recipient uses the key to decrypt the data, converting it back to plain text that can be read.
The more complex the cryptographic key, the more secure the encryption, as third parties are less likely to be able to decrypt it using a brute force attack (i.e., by searching through random numbers until the correct combination is guessed).
Asymmetric encryption methods:
Asymmetric encryption, also known as public-key cryptography, encrypts and decrypts data using two separate cryptographic asymmetric keys. These two keys are known as the "public key" and the "private key".
Asymmetric encryption methods are common:
• RSA: RSA, named after computer scientists Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir and Leonard Adleman, is a popular algorithm used to encrypt data using a public key and decrypt it using a private key for secure data transmission..
• Public key infrastructure (PKI): PKI is a way to manage encryption keys by issuing and managing digital certificates.
Symmetric encryption methods:
Symmetric encryption is a type of encryption in which only one secret symmetric key is used to encrypt the plaintext and decrypt the ciphertext.
Symmetric encryption methods are common:
• Data Encryption Standards (DES): DES is a low-level block encryption algorithm that converts plaintext into blocks of 64 bits and converts them into ciphertext using 48-bit keys.
• Triple DES: Triple DES performs DES encryption three times: encrypts, decrypts, and encrypts the data again.
• Advanced Encryption Standard (AES): AES is often referred to as the gold standard for data encryption and is used globally as the US government standard.
• Twofish: Twofish is considered to be one of the fastest encryption algorithms and is free.
Quantum cryptography
Quantum cryptography (also known as quantum encryption) refers to various cybersecurity methods for encrypting and transmitting secure data based on the natural and unchanging laws of quantum mechanics. Although quantum encryption is still in its early stages of development, it has the potential to be much more secure than previous types of cryptographic algorithms and is even theoretically unbreakable.
Unlike traditional cryptography, which is based on mathematics, quantum cryptography is based on the laws of physics. In particular, quantum cryptography relies on the unique principles of quantum mechanics:
• Particles are inherently uncertain: At the quantum level, particles can simultaneously exist in more than one place or in more than one state at the same time, and it is impossible to predict their exact quantum state.
• Photons can be measured randomly in binary positions: Photons, the smallest particles of light, can have certain polarities or spins, which can serve as a binary analogue of the ones and zeros of classical computing systems.
• A quantum system cannot be measured without changing it: According to the laws of quantum physics, the basic act of measuring or even observing a quantum system will always have a measurable effect on that system.
• Particles can be partially, but not completely, cloned: Although the properties of some particles can be cloned, it is believed that a 100% clone is not possible.