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A key in cryptography is a piece of information, usually a string of numbers or letters that are stored in a file, which, when processed through a cryptographic algorithm, can encode or decode cryptographic data. Based on the used method, the key can be different sizes and varieties, but in all cases, the strength of the encryption relies on ...
In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption —a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is encipherment. To encipher or encode is to convert information into cipher or code. In common parlance, "cipher" is synonymous with "code", as ...
Cryptography. Cryptography, or cryptology (from Ancient Greek: κρυπτός, romanized : kryptós "hidden, secret"; and γράφειν graphein, "to write", or -λογία -logia, "study", respectively [ 1] ), is the practice and study of techniques for secure communication in the presence of adversarial behavior. [ 2]
data encryption key (DEK) used to encrypt the underlying data. derived key - keys computed by applying a predetermined hash algorithm or key derivation function to a password or, better, a passphrase. DRM key - A key used in digital rights management to protect media. electronic key - (NSA) key that is distributed in electronic (as opposed to ...
Symmetric-key algorithm. Symmetric-key algorithms[ a] are algorithms for cryptography that use the same cryptographic keys for both the encryption of plaintext and the decryption of ciphertext. The keys may be identical, or there may be a simple transformation to go between the two keys. [ 1] The keys, in practice, represent a shared secret ...
Public-key cryptography. An unpredictable (typically large and random) number is used to begin generation of an acceptable pair of keys suitable for use by an asymmetric key algorithm. In an asymmetric key encryption scheme, anyone can encrypt messages using a public key, but only the holder of the paired private key can decrypt such a message.
Ciphertext is also known as encrypted or encoded information because it contains a form of the original plaintext that is unreadable by a human or computer without the proper cipher to decrypt it. This process prevents the loss of sensitive information via hacking. Decryption, the inverse of encryption, is the process of turning ciphertext into ...
The Vigenère cipher uses a Caesar cipher with a different shift at each position in the text; the value of the shift is defined using a repeating keyword. [13] If the keyword is as long as the message, is chosen at random , never becomes known to anyone else, and is never reused, this is the one-time pad cipher, proven unbreakable.