Tagged Questions

2
votes
2answers
146 views

Assymetric password encryption - Viable? Which algorithm?

We have an application that requires cleartext passwords for user authentication because of the authentication mechanism in use (RADIUS/CHAP), which unfortunately we cannot change. Since we don't want ...
1
vote
1answer
97 views

How can encryption software accept password lengths which are not one of the AES key lengths?

AES comes with key sizes of 128, 192, and 256 bit. But in Truecrypt or other crypto software we can use passwords of different length, even less than 128 bit or more than 256 bit. How is this ...
2
votes
0answers
46 views

Encrypting or HMACing password digests

Assuming I'm using bcrypt to digest passwords, is any additional security gained by either encrypting or HMACing the resulting digests? By requiring a key to compare password hashes, I would expect ...
3
votes
1answer
185 views

A single password manager vs password generator/hash

I have been wondering about the options available for managing passwords. However, they all seem to fail if the master password is compromised (which isn't a big surprise). On one hand you have ...
5
votes
3answers
168 views

Stretching passwords for encrypting small files

I would like to know how to store a sensitive file; a credential of sorts. I want to password-protect it, obviously. It would be appropriate - in my application - to prompt the user for the password ...
4
votes
2answers
740 views

Is there a way to make RC4 (ARCFOUR) secure, or is it completely broken?

I need a method to authenticate a process with another in order to establish interprocess communication between them, to prevent malicious processes from trying to hook onto the system. Currently I ...
6
votes
2answers
375 views

Hash decrypts key, key decrypts cipher… why?

I noticed recently that a couple of pieces of encryption software (TrueCrypt being one of them) don't directly use a hash of the password as the key for the block cipher. Instead, they generate a ...
3
votes
1answer
178 views

How can one share information using the 'host-proof' paradigm?

I am attempting to make a web-based secure password management and sharing utility, both as an academic exercise and to fully understand and feel safe about using it. I really like the idea of a ...
0
votes
2answers
133 views

How can I store a combination of multiple pass phrases?

Let's assume we have 2 phrases, one is the real password from a user, and the other is generated from the real password and almost impossible to guess. You would need both to authenticate a user. What ...
1
vote
2answers
273 views

Passwords with same SALT. What does this mean?

If the same SALT is used for many passwords on a Linux server, in what way is that a security risk? Does the mean, that a user (which can change his own password) can calculate other users passwords? ...
3
votes
3answers
842 views

Simple/beginner level explanation of salt

I'm a beginner to cryptography and looking to understand in very simple terms what salt is, when I might need to use it and why I should/should not use it. Can anyone offer me a very simple and clear ...
16
votes
6answers
894 views

Is there a secure cryptosystem that can be performed mentally?

I, myself, do not plan on getting into a situation where I would be unable to use a computer in order to communicate securely. However, I can think of many practical situations in which mental ...
2
votes
2answers
244 views

Are there public slow-but-strong algorithms out there that resist brute-force attacks better?

I'm reading that AES uses 4x4 bytes (4*4*8 = 256 bits key) matrix for performances matters (since it's a requirement for common standard encryption algorithms), but are there implementations with ...
1
vote
3answers
348 views

Is public-key cryptography the only option in this scenario?

Two parties: a client and a server are to a agree on a symmetric key. Both the client and the server are aware of a master password. The way this is currently done ...
0
votes
1answer
390 views

iSeries (AS/400) Database File: password encryption

I am helping with a project in which an old software system on an iSeries is having a brand new .NET UI applied to it. It's going well... except... In order to allow users to login and maintain ...