A formula used to turn ordinary data, or "plaintext," into a secret code known as "ciphertext." Each algorithm uses a string of bits known as a "key" to perform the calculations. The larger the key (the more bits), the greater the number of potential patterns can be created, thus making it harder to break the code and descramble the contents.
Most encryption algorithms use the block cipher method, which codes fixed blocks of input that are typically from 64 to 128 bits in length. Some use the stream method, which works with the continuous stream of input.
The dialog box below from the ScramDisk encryption program shows the various algorithms offered to encrypt data on your hard disk. The free, open source, legacy version of ScramDisk is available at www.samsimpson.com. The accompanying descriptions and performance comparisons from the ScramDisk documentation manual are provided because they provide a brief and clear summary of current-day secret key encryption algorithms.
The following is reproduced with permission, courtesy of Sam Simpson and Aman. See mode of operation, cryptography, security protocol, stream cipher, block cipher and algorithm.
ScramDisk Encryption
ScramDisk encrypts data on the hard disk, and this dialog box allows for the selection of the encryption algorithm. "Mouse entropy" is the amount of randomness introduced into the creation of the key. The more the mouse is moved around in a random pattern, the more randomness.
3DES
This is far better than DES; it uses three applications of the DES cipher in EDE (Encipher-Decipher-Encipher) mode with totally independent keys. Outer-CBC is used. This algorithm is thought to be very secure (major banks use it to protect valuable transactions), but it is also very, very slow.
Blowfish
Blowfish is a high security encryption alogorithm designed by Bruce Schneier, the author of Applied Cryptography and owner of the company Counterpane. It is very fast, is considered secure and is resistant to linear and differential analysis. This is my personal cipher of choice.
DES
Data Encryption Standard was designed in the early 1970s by IBM with input from NSA. It is OK, but a single key can be broken in three days by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a poorly funded organization. This algorithm was provided for completeness.
IDEA
International Data Encryption Algorithm was produced by Xuejia Lai and James Massey. It is fairly fast, is considered secure, and it is also resistant to both linear and differential analysis. To use this for anything other than personal use, a royalty must be paid to Ascom-Systec Ltd.
Misty1
Misty1 was designed by M. Matsui of Mitsubishi. It is a reasonably fast cipher that is resistant to both linear and differential analysis. It is fairly new though, so use it with caution.
Square
Square is a very fast and reasonably secure block cipher produced by John Daemen and Vincent Rijmen. It hasn't been subject to as much peer review as Blowfish, 3DES, IDEA, etc., so it may be susceptible to attacks.
Summer
This is a proprietary stream cipher constructed by the author and is designed for speed alone. It is supplied for backward compatibility with Version 1 of ScramDisk and is not recommended for use on newly created disks. Instead, use TEA or Blowfish, which are both reasonably fast.
TEA
Tiny Encryption Algorithm is a very fast and moderately secure cipher produced by David Wheeler and Roger Needham of Cambridge Computer Laboratory. There is a known weakness in the key schedule, so it is not recommended if utmost security is required. TEA is provided in 16 and 32 round versions. The more rounds (iterations), the more secure, but slower.
Most encryption algorithms use the block cipher method, which codes fixed blocks of input that are typically from 64 to 128 bits in length. Some use the stream method, which works with the continuous stream of input.
The dialog box below from the ScramDisk encryption program shows the various algorithms offered to encrypt data on your hard disk. The free, open source, legacy version of ScramDisk is available at www.samsimpson.com. The accompanying descriptions and performance comparisons from the ScramDisk documentation manual are provided because they provide a brief and clear summary of current-day secret key encryption algorithms.
The following is reproduced with permission, courtesy of Sam Simpson and Aman. See mode of operation, cryptography, security protocol, stream cipher, block cipher and algorithm.
ScramDisk Encryption
ScramDisk encrypts data on the hard disk, and this dialog box allows for the selection of the encryption algorithm. "Mouse entropy" is the amount of randomness introduced into the creation of the key. The more the mouse is moved around in a random pattern, the more randomness.
3DES
This is far better than DES; it uses three applications of the DES cipher in EDE (Encipher-Decipher-Encipher) mode with totally independent keys. Outer-CBC is used. This algorithm is thought to be very secure (major banks use it to protect valuable transactions), but it is also very, very slow.
Blowfish
Blowfish is a high security encryption alogorithm designed by Bruce Schneier, the author of Applied Cryptography and owner of the company Counterpane. It is very fast, is considered secure and is resistant to linear and differential analysis. This is my personal cipher of choice.
DES
Data Encryption Standard was designed in the early 1970s by IBM with input from NSA. It is OK, but a single key can be broken in three days by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a poorly funded organization. This algorithm was provided for completeness.
IDEA
International Data Encryption Algorithm was produced by Xuejia Lai and James Massey. It is fairly fast, is considered secure, and it is also resistant to both linear and differential analysis. To use this for anything other than personal use, a royalty must be paid to Ascom-Systec Ltd.
Misty1
Misty1 was designed by M. Matsui of Mitsubishi. It is a reasonably fast cipher that is resistant to both linear and differential analysis. It is fairly new though, so use it with caution.
Square
Square is a very fast and reasonably secure block cipher produced by John Daemen and Vincent Rijmen. It hasn't been subject to as much peer review as Blowfish, 3DES, IDEA, etc., so it may be susceptible to attacks.
Summer
This is a proprietary stream cipher constructed by the author and is designed for speed alone. It is supplied for backward compatibility with Version 1 of ScramDisk and is not recommended for use on newly created disks. Instead, use TEA or Blowfish, which are both reasonably fast.
TEA
Tiny Encryption Algorithm is a very fast and moderately secure cipher produced by David Wheeler and Roger Needham of Cambridge Computer Laboratory. There is a known weakness in the key schedule, so it is not recommended if utmost security is required. TEA is provided in 16 and 32 round versions. The more rounds (iterations), the more secure, but slower.
Summary
Block Key
Size Size Speed**
Type Author Bits Bits (m:s)
3DES Diffie & Hellman 64 168 4:05
Blowfish Schneier 64 256 0:55
DES IBM & NSA 64 56 1:42
IDEA Lai & Massey 64 128 1:07
Misty1 Matsui 64 128 2:50
Square Daemon & Rijmen 128 128 0:39
Summer Aman (stream) 128 0:46
TEA 16 Wheeler & Needham 64 128 0:46
TEA 32 Wheeler & Needham 64 128 1:03
**Speed is time to copy a 50MB file from a normal
disk to a ScramDisk on a 166 Mhz Pentium.
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2009 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Smart Encryptor - Encryption Manager 5.11 (Windows)
- SmartEncryptor uses the most powerful encryption algorithms existing. AES - the US Government standard symmetric encryption algorithm and Blowfish. Encrypt files and folders Send files over the Internet securely Create self-decrypting executables. Works on all Windows systems. Version 4.1 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.
- Software downloads 2009-11-21
- File Encryption XP 1.5.149 (Windows)
- File Encryption XP is password protection software for Windows. Files are encrypted with hack-proof Blowfish algorithm. This tool works with USB drives, flash memory cards, HDDs, ZIP drives, and works with any Windows PC. When encrypting files, the passwords are not "inserted" inside the encrypted files, so if you lose...
- Software downloads 2009-11-11
- PRPWallet - Best Price Wallet for Windows Mobile (Mobile)
- Digital Password Manager Software Windows Mobile Pocket PC. Carry all your vital information with this Secure, Safe, Convenient & Powerful personal information management solution with Touch UI. Store passwords, PINs, bank account, credit cards, email usernames, group IDs, membership IDs & any other important information. DEFAULT PASSWORD - '123'Storing &...
- Software downloads 2009-11-07
- LoginStar 2009.11.5 (Windows)
- LoginStar lets you only remember a password, then simple and fast login in each kind of website (Blog, E-shopping / Auctions, E-mail, Online Banking, Web Drives ....and so on). Remove the need to remember a variety of network accounts and passwords, allowing you to easily enjoy the network of life....
- Software downloads 2009-11-05
- Secret Data Manager 2.6.2 (Windows)
- Secret Data Manager is a great tool for computer users to keep their private files in encrypted status. Anyone who is looking for a powerful and convenient software to protect data from being read, or even stole should try this Windows Explorer style tool. Secret Data Manager is simple and...
- Software downloads 2009-11-04
- Skype open source? Ain't gonna happen
- EncryptionEven if Skype could legally release source code, it would not do so. Skype encryption is so good that no one, except perhaps some governments working in secret, have broken it. The company is not about to give that asset away for free.If Skype were to release source code, the...
- Discussion threads 2009-11-03
- Conceal 1.0.0 (Windows)
- Drag and Drop it and it's all set to go. The main window of Conceal maintains two panels for Encryption and Decryption, respectively. You can drag and drop the appropriate file on one of the panel in order to initiate the corresponding process. File can also be added by Double-clicking...
- Software downloads 2009-10-31
- MobiSafeFile 1.1 (Mobile)
- is a powerful file encryption and privacy protection software running on Windows Mobile.It can encryptdecrypt filesfolders on your mobile. It has beautiful interface, easy to operate. It using international AES encryption algorithm to protect your privacy. MobiSafeFile is very small, but with high efficiency.
- Software downloads 2009-10-30
- Data Guardian 1.7.1 (Mac)
- Security and privacy are two of the most important issues in today's world; leaving passwords on sticky notes around your computer simply will not cut it anymore. Data Guardian is a secure database application with up to 448-bits of Blowfish encryption - regardless of how sensitive your data is. Create...
- Software downloads 2009-10-20
- PDF Creator Pro 3.0 (Windows)
- GIRDAC PDF Creator Pro creates PDF documents. It creates PDF file from Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. It creates PDF file from any printable file. It creates PDF file by simply dragging and dropping Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. It combines multiple documents to create a single PDF...
- Software downloads 2009-10-16
- Knox 1.6.4 (Mac)
- As the only integrated solution for encryption and backup, Knox 1.5.1 makes securing your files easier than ever. Create as many encrypted vaults as you want, each with separate passwords. Then schedule automatic backups. You can even reformat USB sticks and external drives as encrypted Knox vaults moving files between...
- Software downloads 2009-09-30
- Flexcrypt Free 3.0.0.2896 (Windows)
- Flexcrypt is a free encryption software that provides encrypted communication And encrypted storage. Flexcrypt can encrypt your Emails, Texts, Files, MSN/ICQ messages and Hard drive. E-mail encryption requires the usage of a local email client not webmail. Enter the receivers address in Flexcrypt, and the emails will be encrypted. Send...
- Software downloads 2009-09-29
- Norton Internet Security 2010 (1 User, 3 PCs)
- Dramatic improvements to its Norton suite during the past two years indicate that Symantec has been listening to the needs and complaints of its customers. The company's strong and surprising changes to Norton's impact on system performance that it introduced last year are maintained in this new version, and a...
- Product reviews 2009-09-24
- KeePassX 0.4.1 (Mac)
- KeePassX is an application for people with extremly high demands on secure personal data management. It saves many different information like user names, passwords, urls, attachemts, and comments in one single database. For a better management user-defined titles and icons can be specified for each single entry. Furthermore the entries...
- Software downloads 2009-09-16
- Encryption for Documents 11.3.2 (Windows)
- Encryption is an easy to use program to protect your files safely and securely. We have used an excellent encryption algorithm to protect your files. Encryption does not change the name of your file or change the icon of the file when it is done encrypting it. The file looks...
- Software downloads 2009-09-14
- Key Creator 1.0 (Windows)
- The Key Creator extends the standard .NET licensing mechanism to provide a secure means of licensing .NET components and applications using encrypted license keys. Key Creator uses simple mechanism with proven and unbreakable encryption algorithm to generate the license key. It generally encrypts the 'Reference Number' and embeds some necessary...
- Software downloads 2009-09-14
- Source code for Skype eavesdropping trojan in the wild
- Earlier this week, Swiss programmer Ruben Unteregger who has been reportedly working for a Swiss company ERA IT Solutions responsible for coding government sponsored spyware, has released the source code of a trojan horse that injects code into the Skype process in order to convert the incoming and outgoing voice...
- Blog posts 2009-08-28
- Researchers crack WPA Wi-Fi encryption in 60 seconds
- Computer scientists in Japan have developed a way to break the WPA encryption system used in wireless routers in just one minute. The attack, which reads encrypted traffic sent between computers and certain types of routers that use the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access)...
- Blog posts 2009-08-27
- Softros LAN Messenger 4.4.2.822 (Windows)
- Softros LAN Messenger is a secure serverless instant messaging program for user-to-user or user-to-group message and file exchange through your corporate network (LAN, WAN, VPN). Softros LAN Messenger comes both as conversation-like multiple user chat rooms and as classic single-message exchange with the offline messaging capability. Every message passing through...
- Software downloads 2009-08-25
- iKnow & Manage 1.4.0 (Mac)
- Descriptions: iKnow & Manage is a database for storing and organizing any kind of data. With the build-in datatypes you can very easy create and gather all information you need every day. Organize/outline your thoughts, you tasks, even your projects. Features: - uses SQL database for storing...
- Software downloads 2009-08-21
Neighboring Terms
Premier Vendor Content Whitepapers, webcasts & resources from our Power Center Sponsors
- Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online - Free Six-Month Trial for Eligible Organizations
-
Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online provides fast online access, simple contact management and better sales performance for a low monthly cost - the best value on the market today.
- Learn more about the free, six-month trial offer>>
- The best support in the Linux business
-
If Linux is going to power your mission-critical applications, you'd better have the best support known to business. Novell was rated the top provider of Linux technical support.
- Learn more >>
- The best support in the Linux business
-
If Linux is going to power your mission-critical applications, you'd better have the best support known to business. Novell was rated the top provider of Linux technical support.
- Learn more >>
- The more you simplify, the more you save
-
When you transition from your existing Red Hat environment to SUSE Linux Enterprise from Novell, you can recognize dramatic cost savings, perhaps as much 50%
- Learn more >>
Meet Doc
-
-
Here to help you with your Document Management Needs
- Doc is an enigma. Born to a Russian ballerina and a German electrical engineer, he grew up in various locations in the United States. He’s seen the insides of more brands, versions, and generations of printer and printer-related hardware than almost anyone.
- To learn more about this mysterious figure check out his blog on ZDNet and his Workspace on TechRepublic. You’ll be glad you did.
-
Produced by
ZDNet and -
