Understanding the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) is critical in today’s data security landscape. AES is a symmetric key encryption algorithm which is used in a variety of different applications, from securing sensitive data in transit to securing data stored at rest. AES is considered the standard for encryption and is used by the US government, financial institutions, and other organizations that need to ensure the security of their data.
At its core, AES uses a shared secret key between two parties to encrypt and decrypt data. The key is used to transform the plaintext (original data) into ciphertext (encoded data) and back into plaintext. The key is used to create a secret key which is then used to both encrypt and decrypt the data. This is why AES is called a symmetric key algorithm.
In order for AES to be effective, the key must be kept secret between the two parties. If the key is known, then the data can be decrypted by anyone who has access to the key. This is why AES is used to encrypt data in transit, as it ensures that the data is secure while being sent over the network.
When it comes to AES, there are three different key lengths that can be used: 128-bit, 192-bit, and 256-bit. The key length is important, as the longer the key, the more secure the data. The US government and other organizations generally use the 256-bit key length, as it offers the highest level of security.
AES also uses a block cipher, which is a type of algorithm that breaks up the data into a series of small blocks, each of which is encrypted separately. This ensures that the data is secure even if a hacker manages to get access to one of the blocks.
Overall, AES is a powerful encryption algorithm that is used to secure data. It uses a shared secret key and a block cipher to ensure that data is secure while in transit and at rest. It is important for organizations to understand the advanced encryption standard and the different key lengths so that they can ensure that their data is secure.
