Cryptography
Has evolved into a complex science in the field of information security 2
What is Cryptography?
Part of a field of study known as cryptology
Cryptology includes:
- Cryptography Study of methods for secret writing Transforming messages into
unintelligible form Recovering messages using some secret knowledge (key)
- Cryptanalysis: Analysis of cryptographic systems, inputs and outputs To derive
confidential information
Cryptography
Encryption – process of transforming plaintext to ciphertext using a cryptographic key
Symmetric key cryptography – uses a single key to both encrypt and decrypt
information. Also known as private key. - Includes DES, 3DES, AES, IDEA, RC5, Blowfish
Asymmetric key cryptography – separate keys for encryption and decryption (public
and private key pairs)
- Includes RSA, Diffie-Hellman, El Gamal 2
Terminology of cryptography
Cipher - Cryptographic technique (algorithm) applying a secret transformation to
messages
Plaintext / cleartext - Original message or data
Encryption - Transforming plaintext, using a secret key, so meaning is concealed
Ciphertext - Unintelligible encrypted plaintext
Decryption - Transforming ciphertext back into original plaintext
Cryptographic Key - Secret knowledge used by cipher to encrypt or decrypt message
Symmetric Key Algorithm
Stream ciphers – encrypts bits of the message at a time
Block ciphers – takes a block of bits and encrypts them as a single unit
Cryptography
Digital Signature – sender encrypts message with own private key instead of
encrypting with intended receiver’s public key
Message digests – produces a condensed representation of a message (hashing)
- MD5
- SHA-1
- HMAC 2
Secret Key Algorithms
DES – block cipher using shared key encryption, 56-bit
3DES (Triple DES) – a block cipher that applies DES three times to each data
block
RC4 – variable-length key, “stream cipher” (generate stream from key, XOR with
data)
AES – replacement for DES; current standard
DES
Data Encryption Standard
Developed by IBM for the US government in 1973-1974, and approved in Nov 1976.
Based on Horst Feistel’s Lucifer cipher
block cipher using shared key encryption, 56-bit key length
Block size: 64 bits 2
Triple DES
3DES (Triple DES) – a block cipher that applies DES three times to each data block
Uses a key bundle comprising of three DES keys (K1, K2, K3), each with 56 bits
excluding parity.
DES encrypts with K1, decrypts with K2, then encrypts with K3 - Ci=
EK1(DK2(EK1(Pi))) Disadvantage: very slow 2
AES
• Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) Cipher
• Published in November 2001
• Symmetric block cipher
• Has a fixed block size of 128 bits
• Has a key size of 128, 192, or 256 bits
• Based on Rijndael cipher which was developed by Joan Daemen and Vincent Rijmen
2