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Have you ever wondered how online security works? How does your credit card information stay safe when shopping online, and how do payments remain secure through digital banking? The answer to this common question is encryption. Encryption technology has become increasingly common over the last decade to protect data stored on computers, mobile devices, cloud storage platforms, and more. But despite its widespread use, many people don’t understand how encryption works. In this blog post, we’ll discuss why encryption is important and how it works.
Encryption is essential in protecting data from unauthorised access. It prevents malicious attackers from exploiting information and using it for their own personal gain or worse. Encryption also ensures user data privacy by ensuring that only those with the appropriate credentials can view certain files. This means that no one else can see what a person is doing online unless they have the necessary means to access it. Encryption provides an extra layer of security when sending sensitive data over networks, such as emails or websites. By encrypting the information it ensures that only those with the correct key can view or access the files and protect them from being intercepted by malicious actors.
At its most basic level, encryption is the process of taking plain text (i.e. data in its original form) and transforming it into ciphertext (i.e. the encrypted version of the data). The transformation often involves using an algorithm to scramble the data so that only those with the key can unscramble it back into its original form.
To understand the encryption process, let’s look at an example. Say we have some plain text that reads, “This is a secret message”. To encrypt this data, we’d use a key (e.g. E7F2D33B) and apply it to the data using an algorithm (e.g. AES-256). The result would be a scrambled version of the original data, which would look something like “FhJ-yBxk#g98=f1d”. In order for anyone to decode this data back into its original form, they’d need to enter the exact same key and use the same algorithm.
Encryption keys must be kept secure and only shared with authorised parties to ensure secure communication. It’s also important to use strong cryptography, as this is the best way to protect data from being intercepted or modified by unauthorised users.
Understanding how encryption works and taking the necessary steps to protect your data can ensure your confidential information remains secure online.
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