Simone Lawson
Cryptography is a technique of securing information and communications using codes to ensure confidentiality, integrity, and authentication. Cryptographic attacks refer to the process of attempting to compromise the security of encrypted data by exploiting weaknesses in cryptographic algorithms or keys. These attacks aim to retrieve the plaintext from the ciphertext or decode the encrypted data. Cryptographic attacks can be broadly classified into passive and active attacks. Passive attacks intend to obtain unauthorized access to sensitive data or information by intercepting or eavesdropping on general communication. On the other hand, active attacks involve some kind of modification of the data or communication. There are several types of cryptographic attacks, including brute-force attacks, known-plaintext attacks, chosen-plaintext attacks, and birthday attacks. To prevent cryptographic attacks, it is crucial to have a robust cryptographic system, regularly update cryptographic algorithms and protocols, ensure proper encryption, and educate employees about attack prevention.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Type of Attack | Passive, Active |
| Method | Circumventing the security of a cryptographic system |
| Process | Cryptanalysis |
| Target | Cryptographic or cipher systems that conceal data |
| Data | Ciphertext, encryption keys, etc. |
| Objective | Retrieve the plaintext from the ciphertext or decode the encrypted data |
| Techniques | Ciphertext-only attacks, known-plaintext attacks, chosen-plaintext/ciphertext attacks, adaptive chosen-plaintext analysis, birthday attack, side-channel attack, brute-force attack |
| Preventative Measures | Regularly update cryptographic algorithms and protocols, ensure data is appropriately encrypted, use strong and unique keys, store keys securely, regularly test the system for vulnerabilities, educate employees about attacks and prevention |
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What You'll Learn
- Brute-force attacks: trying every possible key to find the correct one
- Ciphertext-only attacks: only encrypted messages are available
- Known-plaintext attacks: both plaintext and ciphertext are known
- Chosen-plaintext/ciphertext attacks: attacker chooses data to expose the encryption scheme
- Protocol attacks: creating ambiguity in the ownership of a watermark
Brute-force attacks: trying every possible key to find the correct one
Cryptography is a technique used to secure information and communications using codes, thereby ensuring confidentiality, integrity and authentication. Cryptanalysis, on the other hand, is the study of cryptographic algorithms and the breaking of secret codes. One of the methods used in cryptanalysis is the brute-force attack.
A brute-force attack is a hacking method that uses trial and error to crack passwords, login credentials, and encryption keys. It is a simple yet reliable tactic for gaining unauthorized access to individual accounts and organizations' systems and networks. The hacker tries multiple usernames and passwords, often using a computer to test a wide range of combinations, until they find the correct login information. The name "brute force" comes from the attackers' use of excessive force to gain access to user accounts.
In a brute-force attack, the cybercriminal tries various private keys to decipher an encrypted message or data. If the key size is 8-bit, the possible keys are 256 (2^8). The cybercriminal must know the algorithm (usually found as an open-source program) to try all 256 possible keys in this attack technique. The longer the password, the more time it takes to find the correct one. As the password's length increases, the amount of time, on average, to find the correct password increases exponentially. The resources required for a brute-force attack grow exponentially with increasing key size, not linearly.
To prevent brute-force attacks, it is essential to have a strong cryptographic system in place. Some ways to achieve this are to regularly update cryptographic algorithms and protocols, ensure that data is appropriately encrypted, use strong and unique keys for encryption, and store the keys in a secure location. Additionally, businesses must constantly monitor their systems and networks for suspicious or unusual behaviour and block potentially malicious activity immediately.
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Ciphertext-only attacks: only encrypted messages are available
Cryptography is a technique used to secure information and communications using codes, thereby ensuring confidentiality, integrity and authentication. Cryptanalysis, on the other hand, is the study of cryptographic algorithms and the breaking of secret codes. One type of cryptanalytic attack is a ciphertext-only attack (COA), where the attacker only has access to encrypted messages. The attacker has no knowledge of the plaintext data or the secret key.
In a COA, the attacker tries to find the corresponding encryption key and plaintext. This type of attack is considered one of the hardest to implement, but it is also the most probable as it only requires ciphertext. COA attacks rely on the nature of the algorithm and the attacker's knowledge of the general characteristics of the plaintext. For example, the attacker might know the language in which the plaintext is written or the expected statistical distribution of characters.
While the attacker may not have direct access to the plaintext, they can make educated guesses about its content based on their knowledge and the context of the message. For instance, standard protocol data and messages are commonly part of the plaintext in many deployed systems and can often be guessed or known in a COA. Additionally, mechanical encryption devices such as Enigma can be vulnerable to COA if they exploit insecure protocols for indicating message settings.
To prevent COA and other cryptographic attacks, it is crucial to have a robust cryptographic system in place. This includes regularly updating cryptographic algorithms and protocols, ensuring proper data encryption, using strong and unique encryption keys, and regularly testing the system for vulnerabilities.
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Known-plaintext attacks: both plaintext and ciphertext are known
Cryptography is a technique of securing information and communications using codes to ensure confidentiality, integrity and authentication. Cryptanalysis, on the other hand, is the study of cryptographic algorithms and the breaking of those secret codes. A cryptographic attack is a method used by hackers to target cryptographic solutions like ciphertext, encryption keys, etc. These attacks aim to retrieve the plaintext from the ciphertext or decode the encrypted data.
Known-plaintext attacks (KPA) are a type of cryptanalytic attack where the attacker has access to both the plaintext (called a crib) and its encrypted version (ciphertext). The term "crib" originated at Bletchley Park, the British World War II decryption operation. The idea behind a crib is that cryptologists, when faced with incomprehensible ciphertext, can use a clue about a word or phrase likely to be in the ciphertext to break into it.
In a known-plaintext attack, the attacker uses the known plaintext and ciphertext to break the encryption and access sensitive information. The attacker can use this known pair to "reverse engineer" the encryption method. Even if they don’t know the exact key or algorithm at first, just having access to this one pair of plaintext and ciphertext gives them a foothold to start cracking the encryption. The more pairs the attacker has, the easier it becomes to figure out the encryption method and key, making it much easier to decrypt other messages that are encrypted using the same method.
Linear cryptanalysis is a type of known-plaintext attack where the cryptanalyst finds large amounts of plaintext/ciphertext pairs created with the same key. The pairs are studied to derive information about the key used to create them. The most common attack is against “double DES,” which encrypts with two keys in “encrypt, encrypt” order. The attacker generates every possible value for key 1 and uses each to encrypt the plaintext, saving the intermediate (half-encrypted) ciphertext results. Once decrypted, the attacker looks up the intermediate ciphertext, looking for a match. If there is a match, the attacker has found both keys.
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Chosen-plaintext/ciphertext attacks: attacker chooses data to expose the encryption scheme
Cryptography is a technique of securing information and communications using codes to ensure confidentiality, integrity and authentication. Cryptanalysis, on the other hand, is the study of cryptographic algorithms and the breaking of secret codes. A chosen-plaintext attack (CPA) is an attack model for cryptanalysis that assumes the attacker can obtain the ciphertexts for arbitrary plaintexts. The attacker chooses random plaintexts and obtains the corresponding ciphertexts, attempting to find the encryption key. The goal of the attack is to gain information that reduces the security of the encryption scheme.
In a chosen-plaintext attack, the attacker can possibly adaptively ask for the ciphertexts of arbitrary plaintext messages. This is formalised by allowing the attacker to interact with an encryption oracle, viewed as a black box. The attacker's goal is to reveal all or part of the secret encryption key. The attacker may choose 'n' plaintexts and send these to the encryption oracle, which will then encrypt the attacker's plaintexts and send them back. The attacker then receives 'n' ciphertexts back, knowing which ciphertext corresponds to each plaintext. Based on the plaintext-ciphertext pairs, the attacker can attempt to extract the key used by the oracle to encode the plaintexts.
A chosen-plaintext attack is more powerful than a known-plaintext attack because the attacker can directly target specific terms or patterns, allowing faster gathering of data relevant to cryptanalysis. However, a chosen-plaintext attack is less powerful than a chosen-ciphertext attack, where the attacker can obtain the plaintexts of arbitrary ciphertexts. Chosen-ciphertext attacks, like other attacks, may be adaptive or non-adaptive. In an adaptive chosen-ciphertext attack, the attacker can use the results from prior decryptions to inform their choices of which ciphertexts to have decrypted. In a non-adaptive attack, the attacker chooses the ciphertexts without seeing any of the resulting plaintexts.
To prevent cryptography attacks, it is essential to have a strong cryptographic system in place. Some ways to achieve this include regularly updating cryptographic algorithms and protocols, ensuring data is appropriately encrypted, using strong and unique keys, and regularly testing the system for vulnerabilities.
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Protocol attacks: creating ambiguity in the ownership of a watermark
Cryptography is a technique used to secure information and communications using codes, thereby ensuring confidentiality, integrity, and authentication. Cryptanalysis, on the other hand, is the study of cryptographic algorithms and the process of breaking secret codes. It involves understanding the cryptosystem and its algorithms, as well as finding and exploiting any weaknesses to create a more secure system.
Protocol attacks are a type of cryptanalytic attack that targets cryptographic solutions such as ciphertext, encryption keys, and cryptographic protocols. These attacks aim to retrieve the plaintext from the ciphertext or decode encrypted data by exploiting weaknesses in cryptography techniques. One specific type of protocol attack is the ambiguity attack, which is relevant to the context of watermarking.
Watermarks are used by content providers to protect their multimedia objects from copyright infringement. However, the robustness of these watermarks can be challenged by protocol attacks, which introduce ambiguity during the copyright resolution process. Ambiguity attacks, also known as invertibility attacks, involve an adversary creating a forged watermark derived from a published work or even from non-watermarked images in the public domain. They then commit this forged watermark, potentially claiming ownership of the original work. This casts doubt on the reliability of the resulting decision by exploiting the high false-positive rate of the watermarking scheme.
To counter ambiguity attacks, researchers have proposed embedding multiple watermarks instead of just one, while also constraining the embedding distortion. This approach, known as additive watermarking, reduces the false-positive probability and makes it more difficult for attackers to create ambiguity in the ownership of a watermark.
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