encryption

Also known as encipherment

alt=Text being turned into nonsense, then gets converted back to original|thumb|300x300px|A simple illustration of public-key cryptography, one of the most widely used forms of encryption In cryptography, encryption (more specifically, encoding) is the process of transforming information in a way that, ideally, only authorized parties can decode. This process converts the original representation of the information, known as plaintext, into an alternative form known as ciphertext. Despite its goal, encryption does not itself prevent interference but denies the intelligible content to a would-be

AI overview

Encryption is the process of transforming information into a coded form that only authorized people can understand, converting readable text into seemingly random characters. It matters because while it can't stop someone from intercepting your information, it prevents them from actually reading or using what they've stolen.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Wikidata facts

Image: Public key encryption keys.svg

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Commons category: Cryptographic algorithms
ACM Classification Code (2012): 10002976
Stack Exchange tag: crypto.stackexchange.com/tags/encryption
P13411: South Holland

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~19 min read

Article

18 sections

Contents

History
Ancient
19th–20th century
Modern
Encryption in cryptography
Types
Uses
Regulatory compliance
Data erasure
Limitations
Attacks and countermeasures
The debate around encryption
Integrity protection of Ciphertexts
Ciphertext length and padding
See also
References
Further reading
External links

For technical reasons, an encryption scheme usually uses a pseudo-random encryption key generated by an algorithm. It is possible to decrypt the message without possessing the key but, for a well-designed encryption scheme, considerable computational resources and skills are required. An authorized recipient can easily decrypt the message with the key provided by the originator to recipients but not to unauthorized users.