CASE Cryptography & Data Protection Flashcards

What is the primary characteristic of symmetric encryption?

Answer: It uses the same key for both encryption and decryption

Symmetric encryption uses a single shared secret key for both encrypting and decrypting data.

Which NIST-approved algorithm is the current symmetric block cipher standard?

Answer: AES

AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) is the NIST-approved symmetric block cipher adopted as the US encryption standard in 2001.

What key length does AES-256 use?

Answer: 256 bits

AES-256 uses a 256-bit key, providing the highest security level among AES variants.

What does TLS protect in application security?

Answer: Data in transit between communicating parties

TLS (Transport Layer Security) encrypts data transmitted over networks to protect confidentiality and integrity in transit.

Why is symmetric encryption preferred over asymmetric for bulk data encryption?

Answer: It is significantly faster and more efficient for large volumes

Symmetric encryption is computationally faster than asymmetric encryption, making it suitable for encrypting large datasets.

Which term describes inactive data stored on a disk, database, or storage medium?

Answer: Data at rest

Data at rest refers to data stored physically in any digital form such as databases, file systems, or backup media.