Unit 2

Conventional Cryptographic Techniques

Cryptography plays a key role in securing data. Below are key concepts related to
conventional cryptographic techniques.
1. Conventional Cryptographic Techniques
Conventional cryptography refers to traditional methods of encryption that involve the
use of a shared key for both encryption and decryption. It can be broadly classified
into two types: Substitution Ciphers and Transposition Ciphers.
a. Substitution Ciphers
In substitution ciphers, each letter or symbol in the plaintext is replaced with another
letter or symbol based on a certain system.
Caesar Cipher: A simple form of substitution cipher where each letter of the
plaintext is shifted by a certain number of positions down or up the alphabet.
o Example: Shift by 3 A becomes D, B becomes E, etc.
Monoalphabetic Cipher: Each letter in the plaintext is substituted by a unique
letter in the ciphertext alphabet. There is no pattern to the substitutions.
Polyalphabetic Cipher: Uses multiple substitution alphabets to avoid repetition
of patterns, making it harder to break compared to monoalphabetic ciphers.
The most famous polyalphabetic cipher is the Vigenère Cipher.
b. Transposition Ciphers
In transposition ciphers, the positions of the characters in the plaintext are shifted
according to a regular system. Unlike substitution ciphers, the characters themselves
are not altered.
Rail Fence Cipher: Text is written in a zigzag pattern, and then read off in
rows.
Columnar Transposition: Plaintext is written in a grid, and then the columns
are rearranged in a specific order to form the ciphertext.
2. Symmetric and Asymmetric Ciphers
a. Symmetric Ciphers
In symmetric encryption, the same key is used for both encryption and decryption.
Key Sharing: The key must be shared securely between the sender and the
receiver before communication.
Examples:
o AES (Advanced Encryption Standard): A widely used block cipher
that supports key sizes of 128, 192, and 256 bits.
o DES (Data Encryption Standard): An older symmetric cipher that
uses a 56-bit key, now considered insecure.
o Blowfish: A symmetric block cipher with a variable key length.
b. Asymmetric Ciphers
In asymmetric encryption (also called public-key encryption), two keys are used: a
public key (known to everyone) and a private key (known only to the recipient).
Public Key: Used for encryption.
Private Key: Used for decryption.
Examples:
o RSA: One of the most common asymmetric encryption schemes, used
for secure data transmission.
o ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography): Based on the mathematics of
elliptic curves, offering similar security to RSA but with smaller key
sizes.
Asymmetric encryption solves the key distribution problem found in symmetric
encryption, but it is slower and less efficient for large data sets.
3. One-Time Pad (OTP)
The One-Time Pad is a theoretically unbreakable cipher, where the key is as long as
the message, truly random, and used only once.
Operation: The plaintext is combined with a random key of equal length using
XOR (exclusive OR) operation. The key is then discarded after a single use.
Security: The one-time pad provides perfect secrecy when used correctly
because the ciphertext gives no information about the plaintext without the
key.
Drawback: The key must be securely exchanged and stored, which makes
OTP impractical for many applications.
4. Block Cipher and Stream Cipher
a. Block Ciphers
In block ciphers, data is processed in fixed-size blocks (e.g., 128 bits). Each block is
encrypted individually.
Modes of Operation:
o ECB (Electronic Codebook): The simplest mode; each block is
encrypted independently. This mode is less secure because identical
plaintext blocks produce identical ciphertext blocks.
o CBC (Cipher Block Chaining): Each plaintext block is XORed with the
previous ciphertext block before being encrypted. This mode provides
better security.
o CTR (Counter Mode): Converts the block cipher into a stream cipher
by encrypting a counter value and XORing it with the plaintext.
Example: AES is a block cipher that encrypts data in 128-bit blocks.
b. Stream Ciphers
Stream ciphers encrypt data one bit or byte at a time, making them suitable for
applications where data comes in a continuous stream (e.g., video streaming, real-
time communication).
Operation: Stream ciphers generate a pseudorandom stream of bits (the
keystream), which is then XORed with the plaintext to produce the ciphertext.
Example: RC4 is a widely known stream cipher, though it has been deprecated
due to vulnerabilities.
5. Steganography
Steganography is the practice of hiding data (usually a message) inside another
medium (e.g., image, audio, or video file) so that the presence of the data is not
detected.
Types:
o Image Steganography: Hiding data in the pixel values of an image.
Common techniques include the least significant bit (LSB) method,
where the least significant bit of each pixel’s color component is altered
to embed secret data.
o Audio Steganography: Hiding data within sound files, manipulating
things like frequency or amplitude.
o Video Steganography: Data can be hidden within video files by
altering frames or audio tracks.
Advantages: Steganography is useful for hiding information in plain sight,
making it difficult to detect the presence of the message.
Challenges: Large amounts of data can’t be easily hidden without degrading
the quality of the carrier medium (image, audio, etc.), and modern detection
techniques can sometimes identify hidden data.
Summary
Concept Key Points
S u b s t i t u t i o n Plaintext characters are replaced with others based on a system
Ciphers (e.g., Caesar, Vigenère)
T r a n s p o s i t i o n Plaintext characters are rearranged (e.g., Rail Fence, Columnar
Ciphers Transposition)
S y m m e t r i c Same key for encryption and decryption (e.g., AES, DES,
C i p h e r s Blowfish)
A s y m m e t r i c Public key for encryption and private key for decryption (e.g.,
Ciphers RSA, ECC)
Perfectly secure when key is random, as long as the message,
One-Time Pad and used once only
Block Ciphers Encrypt data in fixed-size blocks (e.g., AES, CBC, ECB, CTR)
Encrypt data one bit/byte at a time, suitable for real-time
Stream Ciphers applications (e.g., RC4)
Hiding information in a medium such as an image or audio,
Steganography undetectable without proper analysis
These cryptographic techniques form the foundation of modern encryption and
secure communication. Some, like the one-time pad, offer theoretical perfection,
while others, like block and stream ciphers, offer practical solutions for data
protection in various environments.