{"id":1911,"date":"2019-04-23T16:02:45","date_gmt":"2019-04-23T16:02:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kruptos2.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1911"},"modified":"2020-05-01T12:00:22","modified_gmt":"2020-05-01T12:00:22","slug":"common-usage-of-encryption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kruptos2.co.uk\/blog\/common-usage-of-encryption\/","title":{"rendered":"Common Usage of Encryption"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

The purpose of this article is to provide information in the area of practical cryptography of interest to anyone wishing to use Encryption Software<\/a>. This post covers starting from what is encryption, how encryption works, requirement for encryption and common usage of encryption in real world with examples.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What is Encryption?<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\r\n

Encryption<\/b>\u00a0is the conversion of information into an\u00a0cryptographic<\/span><\/a> encoding that can’t be read without a\u00a0key<\/span><\/a>. Encrypted data looks meaningless and is extremely difficult for unauthorized parties to decrypt without the correct key.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Cryptography is the art or science of secret writing, or more exactly, of storing information (for a shorter or longer period of time) in a form which allows it to be revealed to those you wish to see it yet hides it from all others.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A cryptosystem is a method to accomplish this. Cryptanalysis is the practice of defeating such attempts to hide information. Cryptology includes both cryptography and cryptanalysis.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

How Encryption Works?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\r\n

The original information to be hidden is called “plaintext”. The hidden information is called “ciphertext”. Encryption is any procedure to convert plaintext into ciphertext. Decryption is any procedure to convert ciphertext into plaintext.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A cryptosystem is designed so that decryption can be accomplished only under certain conditions, which generally means only by persons in possession of both a decryption engine (these days, generally a computer program) and a particular piece of information, called the decryption key, which is supplied to the decryption engine in the process of decryption.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Plaintext is converted into ciphertext by means of an encryption engine (again, generally a computer program) whose operation is fixed and determinate (the encryption method) but which functions in practice in a way dependent on a piece of information (the encryption key) which has a major effect on the output of the encryption process.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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What is Encryption<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n

A cryptosystem could be designed which made use of several different methods of encryption, the particular method chosen for a particular encryption process being key-dependent. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

The combination of encryption methods results again in an encryption method, which is just as deterministic as a simpler cryptosystem, although probably harder for a cryptanalyst to crack.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A good cryptosystem should in fact vary the details of its encryption method in a key-dependent way, though high security does not require the combination of distinct encryption algorithms.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The result of using the decryption method and the decryption key to decrypt ciphertext produced by using the encryption method and the encryption key should always be the same as the original plaintext (except perhaps for some insignificant differences).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In this process the encryption key and the decryption key may or may not be the same. When they are the cryptosystem is called a “symmetric key” system; when they are not it is called an “asymmetric key” system. <\/span><\/p>\r\n

The most widely-known instance of a symmetric cryptosystem is DES (the so-called “Data Encryption Standard”). The most widely-known instance of an asymmetric key cryptosystem is PGP (“Pretty Good Privacy”).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

An encryption algorithm (a precise specification of the steps to be taken when encrypting plaintext and when decrypting the resulting ciphertext) is known as an “asymmetric algorithm” if the encryption and decryption keys that it uses are different; otherwise it is a “symmetric algorithm”.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Benefits for using Encryption:<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\r\n

There are many reasons for using encryption (examples are given below), and the cryptosystem that one should use is the one best suited for one’s particular purpose and which satisfies the requirements of security, reliability and ease-of-use.<\/span><\/p>\r\n