Asymmetric Encryption Algorithms

Asymmetric encryption involves using different pairs of keys to encrypt and decrypt a message. A synonym of asymmetric encryption is public/private key encryption, but there are some differences between asymmetric and public/private key encryption, which we will discover in this chapter. Starting with a little bit of history of this revolutionary method of encryption/decryption, we will look at different types of asymmetric algorithms and how they help secure our credit cards, identity, and data.

In this chapter, we are going to cover the following topics:

• Public/private key and asymmetric encryption
• The Diffie-Hellman key exchange and the related man-in-the-middle problem
• RSA and an interesting application for international threats
• Introduction to conventional and unconventional attacks on RSA
• Pretty Good Privacy (PGP)
• ElGamal and its possible vulnerabilities

Let’s dive in!