Cryptography is a method of protecting information and communications through the use of codes, so that only those for whom the information is intended can read and process it.
In computer science, cryptography refers to secure information and communication techniques derived from mathematical concepts and a set of rule-based calculations called algorithms, to transform messages in ways that are hard to decipher. These deterministic algorithms are used for cryptographic key generation, digital signing, verification to protect data privacy, web browsing on the internet and confidential communications such as credit card transactions and email.
Asymmetric Encryption is also known as public key cryptography. This method uses two separate keys for encryption. One key, the public key, is used by anybody to encrypt their traffic. This data can only be decrypted by a specific private key, known only by the recipient of the data.
Pros:
Distributing keys is much easier
Scalable in large networks
Cons:
Slower to encrypt and decrypt than symmetric
Harder to implement
Symmetric encryption uses the same key for both encryption and decryption of the data. This means that both parties for whom the data is meant need access to the same key.
Pros:
Faster: Since it uses a single key for encryption and decryption, it’s faster to execute
Cons:
It is much more difficult to share the keys in symmetric encryption
Storing keys securely is much more difficult
Symmetric encryption is not scalable
Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)
Rivest-Shamir Algorithm (RSA)
Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC)
Base64
MD5
SHA
Caesar Cipher
ROT13
XOR
Vigenère Cipher
Last updated