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What is Encryption?

Encryption defines the process of converting plaintext, i.e., human-readable format, into ciphertext. Moreover, encryption serves as a security mechanism to maintain the confidentiality and integrity of data. In the digital age, churning out quintillions of bytes daily, encryption emerges as a critical tool to safeguard information, both in transit and at rest.

Types of Encryptions

Encryption relies on cryptographic keys to ensure the security of data. Depending on the number of keys used, encryption falls into two categories:

Symmetric Encryption: Symmetric encryption uses one key for the data’s encryption and decryption. However, to facilitate data exchange, the communicating parties must securely exchange the encryption. Some common symmetric encryption techniques are:

• AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)
• DES (Data Encryption Standard)
• TDEA (Triple Data Encryption Algorithm)
• RC (Rivest Cipher)
• Blowfish and Twofish algorithms

Asymmetric Encryption: Asymmetric encryption, also known as Public Key Encryption, uses two distinct keys: one for encryption and one for decryption. The public key, accessible to all parties, encrypts the data, while the private key, kept private by the owner, decrypts the data. In a communication between two parties, the sender sends the data by encrypting it with the receiver’s public key and the receiver then decrypts the data using the corresponding private key. Some common asymmetric techniques are:

• RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman)
• Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange
• DSA (Digital Signature Algorithm)
• ElGamal Encryption
• ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography)

Case Study: Equifax Data Breach

In September 2017, Equifax revealed that it suffered a major data breach that exposed the credentials and private information of more than 147 million customers. This resulted in the company having to pay around 425 million dollars in settlement. Apart from the immediate financial loss to customers, the breach was also the cause of multiple identity thefts.

During an investigation, one huge revelation emerged. Equifax stored sensitive data like social security numbers, credit card information, birthdates, and driver’s licenses in plain text files. This practice significantly contributed to the scale of the breach. Using standard encryption algorithms to encrypt the data could have mitigated the impact of the breach.

This breach shows us how, if proper encryption standards and other strong security policies are in place, breaches like these can be avoided or at the very least mitigated.

Why Encryption is Important?

Confidentiality: Encryption helps maintain and preserve the confidentiality of data. Additionally, by encrypting data, individuals and organizations ensure that only authorized and intended recipients possess the capability to decrypt and access the information using the correct key. This encryption acts as a barrier and protects the data from unauthorized users and bad actors. By making sure that even if bad actors intercept the data, they won’t easily be able to decrypt it without the proper key.

Security: Encryption enhances security by adding a layer of protection by transforming sensitive information from plaintext to unreadable ciphertext, bolstering overall defense mechanisms for businesses.

Integrity: Encryption safeguards the integrity of data by employing sophisticated algorithms to prevent unauthorized modifications during transmission or storage, thereby upholding the accuracy and trustworthiness of the information, which is crucial for maintaining data integrity

Regulatory and Legal Compliance: Encryption helps businesses stay compliant with different standards and regulations like HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) in America, GDRP (General Data Protection Regulation) in the European Union, and PCI-DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard).

Maintain Customer Trust: Encryption helps companies maintain customer trust by preventing security breaches and ensuring that unauthorized users cannot decipher the data.

Safe Data Storage: Encrypting data at rest secures your information even if a thief steals the storage device. This security relies on the thief not having access to the encryption key, which is essential for decrypting and reading the data.

Securing Communication Channels: Encryption serves as a cornerstone of securing communication channels and helps maintain privacy in a conversation by encrypting various communication channels, including but not limited to voice calls, emails, instant messaging platforms, etc. When a conversation between two parties is encrypted, an attacker trying to eavesdrop on the conversation will not be able to decipher it.

Conclusion

Encryption is an essential part of the modern cybersecurity landscape. It plays an important role in every part of our digital lives, from securing our financial transactions to our conversations and data. Encryption is one of the most straightforward and effective security measures. By employing robust encryption mechanisms, we can build a secure online environment.

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