Introduction To Encryption

In the electronic age, there has been a need for protecting the data from the unauthorized users. Encryption is an algorithmic security technique that converts the data (plain text) into the non readable form called cipher text.  Cryptography has become the necessity for the data communications.  Encrypted data can be read through the decryption techniques.  In the computer networks and on the internet, encryption is used to send the passwords, credit card’s information, personal information, bank account’s detail and other information securely.

Web browsers encrypt the text automatically when they send the data to the web servers.  Today, there are many methods of encryption but 128-bit SSL is standardized encryption method. It is the most effective way of the data security and it used to protect the confidentially of the transmitted data and the email messages.

Many people the use it in the email correspondence. There are two types of the encryption symmetric and symmetric. Symmetric algorithm works with the single prearranged key and in the asymmetric method a key pair generated such as public key and the private key.  Another important aspect of the asymmetric algorithm is the used of the digital signatures. If you want the powerful encryption then AES should be used.  Using the encryption key only protect your data and for securing the data you need to use the digital signatures so that only the intended recipient should be able to view the data.

Encryption can cipher the data, numeric and the secret codes. The other data security techniques are digital signatures, https, public key encryption, IPsec, RSA, secure sockets, IDEA and MD5.  In order to recover the encrypted data, you need to use the correct decrypt key.

Why Encryption is required?

When you send email, it has to be stay and pass through many email servers and the first server is your local ISP.  An unscrupulous system administrator can read your email at your local ISP. An encrypted and digitally signed email cannot be read by anyone except the intended recipient.

Secondly, there are worldwide satellite spy networks that can intercept the communications such as email, phone and fax communications.

Encryption techniques can also be applied to the entire volume or all the drives of a hard disk.  A special decryption key is used to read the drive.  Once the data is encrypted, the cipher text can only the encrypted by one who has the private key.