Security+: Basic Characteristics of Cryptography Algorithms

Introduction

In today’s digital world, data is the currency of any organization. However, data assets are becoming increasingly vulnerable and attractive targets of malicious actors due to inadequate security mechanisms. To keep data and critical systems secure, enterprises must take full advantage of cryptographic algorithms. along with additional security controls, especially when communicating through a porous network. Here you will learn some essential cryptographic algorithms and their basic characteristics, knowledge of which will help you pass the Security+ exam with an elite score.

What Do I Need to Know About Symmetric Algorithms?

Symmetric algorithms (also known as private-key or secret-key algorithms) are encryption schemes that use a shared cryptographic key for both encryption and decryption of data. When it comes to encrypting data on a hard drive, the user is the only one in possession of the secret key, while in case of data in transit, each partner has a copy of the shared secret key. The following sections describe various symmetric cryptography solutions that are essential for the Security+ exam.

AES – Advanced Encryption Standard

The AES algorithm utilizes the Rijndael algorithm with block sizes and key lengths of 128, 192, and 256 bits to provide better security than its predecessor, the DES algorithm. This solution has been adopted by the U.S. government as the standard for exchanging unclassified but sensitive data.

DES – Data Encryption Standard

As mentioned above, DES is the predecessor of AES. Unlike AES, it uses a Feistel Cipher and involves a 64-bit block cipher that provides a key strength of 56 bits. Even though DES is an outdated standard and not the most secure security mechanism today due to its small key size, it nevertheless played a crucial role in the development of advanced cryptography and deserves to be understood.

3DES – Triple (Read more...)