Public-Key Encryption Algorithms
Public-key cryptography (asymmetric) uses encryption algorithms like RSA and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) to create the public and private keys. These algorithms are based on the
intractability* of certain mathematical problems.
With asymmetric encryption it is computationally easy to generate public and private keys, encrypt messages with the public key, and decrypt messages with the private key. However, it is extremely difficult (or impossible) for anyone to derive the private key based only on the public key.
RSA (Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir, and Leonard Adleman)
RSA stands for Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir, and Leonard Adleman— the men who first publicly described the algorithm in 1977.
RSA is based on the presumed difficulty of factoring large integers (integer factorization). Full decryption of an RSA cipher text is thought to be infeasible on the assumption that no efficient algorithm exists for integer factorization.
A user of RSA creates and then publishes the product of two large prime numbers, along with an auxiliary value, as their public key. The prime factors must be kept secret. Anyone can use the public key to encrypt a message, but only someone with knowledge of the prime factors can feasibly decode the message.
ECC Elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) relies on the algebraic structure of elliptic curves over finite fields. It is assumed that discovering the discrete logarithm of a random elliptic curve element in connection to a publicly known base point is impractical.
The use of elliptic curves in cryptography was suggested by both Neal Koblitz and Victor S. Miller independently in 1985; ECC algorithms entered common use in 2004.
The advantage of the ECC algorithm over RSA is that the key can be smaller, resulting in improved speed and security. The disadvantage lies in the fact that not all services and applications are interoperable with ECC-based SSL Certificates.
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