# All Questions

409 views

### Game traffic encryption AES CTR + HMAC

I was asked to implement traffic encryption between the game server and clients. Currently, the traffic is not encrypted in any way, which lets players use cheats to listen to the traffic in order to ...
111 views

### Sample RSA-style signature confusion

I'm trying to study a simplified TLS-style protocol, including verifying RSA signatures. It's an attempt to verify using only a valid certificate. However, I can't manage to get anything to verify ...
249 views

### What is the GnuPG process for going from a passphrase to a symmetric key?

Suppose I use GnuPG to symmetrically encrypt a file like so: gpg --no-options -c --cipher-algo AES256 --no-random-seed-file -o my.out my.file I then provide a ...
104 views

### Are IVs and salts the same and usable for each other uses?

I'm new in the crypto world and I've just discovered PBKDF (I used to use typed passeword as symmetric key). When using some crypto mode, you're required to ...
132 views

### What is the impact of different modes on pseudo randomness of AES?

AES in CBC-MAC mode is proven to be good PRF . But is there any study done on other modes ? how good is ECB mode as PRF ?
102 views

### Testing a steganalysis technique on realistic data [closed]

I'm developing a new image steganalysis technique, and I'd like to test how effective it is in practice. How could I do this? Are there such things as standard "test vectors" for steganalysis?
125 views

### Generate random in secure message transfer

I’m doing a school assignment about secure communications between a Server and a Client. Basically, messages are exchanged between the clients and the server and these communications must implement ...
164 views

### Can anyone tell me the name of this cipher please?

Can anyone tell me the name of this cipher please? I know it's a simple substitution cipher, I just don't know the name of it. Cipher Key: help Cipher alphabet: ...
111 views

### When do I need to renew keys for Salsa20 or HMAC?

I currently have a system which uses two keys sourced from a single key subjected to HKDF. One key is used in the Salsa20 stream ...
2k views

### ECC key size and signature size

My understanding of ECDSA signature length is that it depends on the key size. So for instance, if a "prime256v1" is used, the signature length will be 64 because (n/8)*2 and for "secp384r1" it will ...
590 views

### Implement deniable encryption with AES/RSA

I'm on a crypto app using OpenSSL (I'm more an implementer/cryptographer than a cryptologist), mainly as a hobby, for now. My app will be able to encrypt a file (not a container) with symmetric or ...
84 views

### collision resistant summarizer for long hash values

how we can summarize SHA-256 into shorter values when we for example can't handle more than 128 bits on system? its better just use first 128bit and ignore the rest of bits or split full value and XOR ...
435 views

### File Hash of Encrypted File

Simple question. I have a source file and I have encrypted it with a certain public key. If I take this exact same source file, encrypt it with the exact same key a few hours later would the file hash ...
772 views

### DES — Can I recover the key when I have both ciphertext and the plaintext?

Given a message and DES encrypted form of said message, is it possible to efficiently compute the key used to encrypt the data?
97 views

### What is the difference between PPE and SPPE?

Can somebody explain, in simple terms, the difference between Pseudo Random Permutation Ensemble and Super Pseudo Random Permutation Ensemble?
151 views

### Has the distributed project “Number Fields @ Home” project benefited cryptography in any meaningful way?

Is there any new understanding, property, or knowledge that has come from the Number Fields @Home distributed computing project? Has any outcome advanced the study of cryptography, or altered ...
237 views

### Do test vectors ensure a cipher is free of backdoors?

If a cipher implementation passes unit tests using test vectors from some trusted source (these for AES, for example), then can we say that it is fully conforming to the specification, and must have ...
202 views

### Pohlig-Hellman exponentiation block cipher

Let $G$ be a group of order $n$ and let $e,d$ be integers such that $ed\equiv 1 \pmod{n}$. Then the exponentiation maps $x \mapsto x^e$ and $y \mapsto y^d$ are inverse maps on $G$. These maps give us ...
506 views

### AES column mixing and S-Box confusion

I am trying to understand the AES encryption algorithm. I know that we process 128 bits at a time for a 128 bit key in a 4x4 octet form, but am confused by the following: How does the substitution ...
115 views

### Block Cipher Mode Amicable to Fast Key Change/Rotation Like XOR?

I'm working with documents encrypted in long term storage. When a client requests the document, the document should be delivered encrypted under a distinct key (distinct from the long term storage ...
2k views

### In RSA, why is it important choosing e so that it is coprime to φ(n)?

When choosing the public exponent e, it is stressed that $e$ must be coprime to $\phi(n)$, i.e. $\gcd(\phi(n), e) = 1$. I know that a common choice is to have $e = 3$ (which requires a good padding ...
268 views

### Can one use a Cryptographic Accumulator to efficiently store Lamport public keys without the need of a Merkle Tree?

One of the problems of one-time Lamport signatures is that public keys are disposed after use, so you must generate many keys and store them in a Merkle tree. The root is the "real" public key and ...
369 views

### How is an AES Encrypted Message Decrypted with Random Padding?

One thing I was surprised to learn about AES is that random padding can be added to the message to make it a multiple of block size. What I can not wrap my head around is how this random padding can ...
614 views

### What are the pros/cons of using symmetric crypto vs. hash in a commitment scheme?

In a commitment scheme, are there any differences on using a symmetric cipher versus using a hash? If at the "opening", I have to reveal $r$ (a random number concatenated with the messaged at the ...
602 views

### Encryption Key derivation from numeric PIN?

I want to store data encrypted within an Android application. Keeping an encryption key safe outside the app is not an option so I looked into password derived key algorithms. I found a nice example ...
310 views

### Diffie-Hellman: Does the size of the prime modulus depend on the potential size of the secret?

I'm writing my own cryptosystem that uses One Time Pad and Diffie-Hellman to generate keys for the OTP. I am using Rails on the server side and Javascript for the client side. Please don't tell me ...
137 views

### Could someone reuse client certificates?

To my understanding, if a server “cert+key” (RSA) is compromised, than the SSL/TLS network traffic can be decrypted. What about a client “cert+key” (RSA)? Could someone reuse client certificates? ...
94 views

### Is it possible to modify SSL handshakes to enable PFS while still using RSA during the handshake?

I know we could possibly be using DH key exchange, that would enable PFS. However, what if we make modifications on our SSL 3.0 handshake such that the only cipher we use is RSA for the achieving PFS? ...
141 views

### How is a PRNG used in the PGP?

I'm currently reading up on the components of PGP and I am wondering what exactly the PRNG is used for. PGP uses ANSI X9.17 and entropy from a users keystrokes to generate a temporary key. So, is ...
189 views

### Where can I find examples of ECC implemented in VHDL?

I am looking into implementing ECDSA signature and ECDH key agreement in a Xilinx FPGA. All the examples I have found of VHDL implementations skip over how to construct the low level ECC primitives ...
95 views

### Can you provide an example in relation to Hidden Field Equations Multivariate?

I'm reading about Hidden Field Equations Multivariate scheme. My lecture states that the central map is a univariate polynomial $$P(X)=\sum_{i=0}^{r-1}\sum_{j=0}^{r-1}p_{ij}x^{q^i+q^j} \in K[X]$$ ...
111 views

### Can a zero knowledge proof (or MAC) be generated from human-typable input?

Edit: My goal is to create a voting scheme that doesn't require a lot of crypto infrastructure to be deployed on the client side. Smartcards, and tokens are impractical for these purposes. I ...
431 views

### How should I manage Diffie-Hellman parameters on a Web Server?

Is there a best practice for Diffie-Hellman parameters (p, g, and q) used on a web server? The server is using ephemeral keys, but should the parameters be rotated on a regular basis? Is it OK for ...
137 views

### Would this prevent FNV1a 32 bit hash collision?

I am considering the FNV1a 32 bit hash as part of a simple software security and authentication system. I am aware that FNV1a is NOT ideal but it may suit my needs. I am aware that FNV1a has rather ...
3k views

### Can you explain “weak keys” for DES?

A weak key for DES is a key $K$ such that $DES_{k_1}(DES_{k_2}(x))=x$ for all $x$. I don't get why are the 4 keys $k_1||k_2$: $1^{112}$, $0^{112}$, $0^{56}||1^{56}$, $1^{56}||0^{56}$ considered as ...
354 views

### How does this happen in RSA malleability?

I don't understand how the $E(m)$ turns into $E(mt)$. I mean, I don't know how does that transformation happen and how does the equation occur. $$E(m) \cdot t^e \bmod n = (mt)^e \bmod n = E(mt)$$ ...
287 views

### Does SpongeWrap (from the Keccak team) absorb ciphertext or plaintext?

I have been reading the Cryptographic sponge functions paper, but I'm still confused. Does Keccak in authenticated encryption mode absorb ciphertext or plaintext? Edit: Are there any test vectors to ...
90 views

### Assuming that we had a way of finding primes, could RSA be used without computers?

I once asked a question "Would RSA make sense if we used no computers?". The answer was negative, because finding primes that would make secure keys would prove too hard. Assuming that we had found ...
139 views

### Rabin/RSA four possible messages?

Given this encryption method: $$f_{N,e} : Z^{*}_{N} \to QR(N)^{*};\quad f_{N,e}(x) = x ^{2e} \bmod N$$ I need to show that, for any $x_{0} \in Z^{*}_{N}$, there are four elements $x \in Z^{*}_{N}$ ...
195 views

### Can you help me with this DES variant analysis?

I'm struggling with some DES variant that I got as an exercise (exercise taken from Katz-Lindell Ex5.14). The variant is as follows: The left half of the master key is used to derive all the ...
2k views

### Find the key to a Vigenère cipher, given known ciphertext and plaintext

I have the ciphertext and the plaintext. Is it possible to know the key? If not, what do I need to find it?
149 views

### Why is it that researchers prefer finding secure software solutions over secure hardware solutions?

My understanding is crypto researchers tend to prefer solving a problem in software without the need for secure hardware. Why is this? What is the big problem with using secure hardware if the ...
71 views

### PRP representation size

I'm now studying the block cipher substitution-permutation network construction and realized that it uses several small pseudo-random permutations instead a big one for saving memory (or that is one ...
125 views

### What is a Message Transmission Scheme?

I've been given as an exercise to show an encryption scheme that is CCA-secure but is not a secure message transmission scheme. What is a message transmission scheme, and how does it differ from a ...
963 views

### why RSA uses Semiprime numbers? [duplicate]

Why does RSA use semiprime numbers? Why not just use any big number ?? What is the advantage of the two original numbers being prime? Because factoring any big number will be difficult
123 views

### How well does breaking multiple DH key exchanges over the same group scale?

Suppose you are running a server with the Diffie-Hellman parameters (so the group G and generator g) generated once. There are ...
102 views

### Asymmetric Cryptography Confusion - 'Sign' a file to guarantee its source

What I want to do is use asymmetric crypto to guarantee that a file comes from a source. I have software that runs on lots of wireless devices, and each of those has a license file with an encrypted ...
1k views

### Why should I use Authenticated Encryption instead of just encryption?

There are various different modes of operation for block cipher use, some of which provide "encryption" and some of which provide authenticated encryption. Why should I use an authenticated ...