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Unscrambling the Secret of Encryption

NCJ Number
153552
Journal
Security Management Volume: 39 Issue: 2 Dated: (February 1995) Pages: 67-70
Author(s)
J Kaplan
Date Published
1995
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Encryption is a crucial method of protecting computerized data that is transmitted through public networks and should be used to protect an organization's information.
Abstract
Like manual encryption on paper, digital encryption makes messages unreadable except to those authorized to decrypt the information. The two basic types of encryption in use today are symmetrical-key encryption, which is sometimes called single-key or private key encryption, and public-key encryption. The first type involves the use of the same key to encrypt and decrypt the data. A person trying to share an encrypted file with another person has to solve the problem of communicating the encryption key without compromising it. Public-key encryption solves that problem by breaking the encryption key process into two parts: a private key used by the individual and not shared with anyone and an associated public key distributed to anyone sending encrypted messages to the private key holder. Although much progress is still needed, corporations can go a long way toward protecting their electronic data by combining the power of public-key encryption, digital signatures, and message digests. Sources of additional information