Cryptography and Network Security Principles A+ Compiled Questions and Correct Answers

Key stretching - A technique used to increase the computational effort required to derive keys from a password. Bcrypt - A cryptographic algorithm that generates hashes from passwords using the Blowfish cipher. PBKDF2 - A key derivation function that is part of the RSA public key cryptography standards. Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) - A public-key cryptographic system based on the mathematics of elliptic curves. Perfect Forward Secrecy (PFS) - A property that ensures the confidentiality of past communication sessions even if the long-term secret key is compromised. Ephemeral Key - An asymmetric key that is used for only one session and then discarded. Static Key - A key that is used for a longer duration and multiple sessions. Session Key - An asymmetric key that is used for encryption and decryption in a single session. ECB (Electronic Codebook) - A block cipher mode that is considered the weakest mode and was used in the Data Encryption Standard (DES). Homomorphic Encryption - A type of encryption where encrypted data can still be processed without being decrypted. EFS (Encrypting File System) - A file-level encryption feature within Microsoft Windows operating systems. FDE (Full Disk Encryption) - A method of encrypting an entire storage device, such as a hard drive or SSD. Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) - A widely used symmetric encryption algorithm that replaced the Data Encryption Standard (DES). Triple Data Encryption Standard (3DES) - A variant of the Data Encryption Standard (DES) that applies the DES algorithm three times for increased security. Blowfish - A symmetric key block cipher that operates on variable-length blocks and is known for its strong security. Twofish - A symmetric key block cipher that operates on 128-bit blocks and is considered secure and efficient. RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman) - A widely used asymmetric encryption algorithm that is based on the difficulty of factoring large prime numbers. Diffie-Hellman (DHE) - A key exchange algorithm used to establish a shared secret key over an insecure communication channel. Digital Signature Algorithm (DSA) - An algorithm used for creating and verifying digital signatures. PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) - A software program used for signing, encrypting, and decrypting texts, emails, and files. CBC (Cipher Block Chaining) - A block cipher mode that combines the plaintext with the previous ciphertext block to provide confidentiality and integrity.