Chapter 8 - Encryption

Question 1

What are self-executing contracts?

Answer 1

Contracts with code-defined terms that execute actions automatically when conditions are met.

Question 2

What are the commercial uses of blockchain?

Answer 2

Companies like IBM promote blockchain for commercial purposes, using permissioned blockchain for business transactions.

Question 3

How does blockchain enhance trust and transparency?

Answer 3

Through an immutable public ledger that ensures data integrity.

Question 4

What is the role of blockchain in supply chain management?

Answer 4

Provides transparency and traceability, ensuring compliance and quality control with immutable records.

Question 5

What is a key feature of blockchain?

Answer 5

Decentralization, which eliminates the need for central authorities.

Question 6

What does an immutable ledger ensure?

Answer 6

Data integrity, as records cannot be altered or deleted.

Question 7

What is the digital evolution impact of blockchain?

Answer 7

It reshapes traditional systems, offering transparency, efficiency, and trust in the digital era.

Question 8

What is a TPM (Trusted Platform Module)?

Answer 8

A dedicated microcontroller for hardware-level security that protects digital secrets.

Question 9

What is the function of an HSM (Hardware Security Module)?

Answer 9

Safeguards and manages digital keys in a tamper-proof environment.

Question 10

What does a Key Management System do?

Answer 10

Manages, stores, distributes, and retires cryptographic keys.

Question 11

What is a secure enclave?

Answer 11

A coprocessor integrated into the main processor for secure data processing and storage.

Question 12

What is steganography?

Answer 12

A technique that conceals a message within another to hide its existence.

Question 13

What is tokenization?

Answer 13

The process of substituting sensitive data with non-sensitive tokens.

Question 14

What is data masking?

Answer 14

The process of disguising original data to protect sensitive information.

Question 15

What are cryptographic attacks?

Answer 15

Techniques used to exploit vulnerabilities in cryptographic systems.

Question 16

What is a downgrade attack?

Answer 16

An attack that forces systems to use weaker cryptographic standards.

Question 17

What is a collision attack?

Answer 17

An attack that finds two different inputs producing the same hash output.

Question 18

What is the Birthday Paradox in cryptography?

Answer 18

The probability that two distinct inputs will produce the same hash output.

Question 19

What is quantum computing?

Answer 19

A computing technology that uses quantum mechanics to access enormous processing power.

Question 20

What are qubits?

Answer 20

Quantum bits that can represent multiple combinations of ones and zeros simultaneously.

Question 21

What is the threat of quantum computing to traditional encryption?

Answer 21

It poses a threat by enabling rapid factorization of large prime numbers.

Question 22

What is post-quantum cryptography?

Answer 22

Cryptographic algorithms designed to be secure against quantum computing attacks.

Question 23

What is one method for creating post-quantum cryptography?

Answer 23

Increasing the key size to raise the number of permutations needed for brute force.

Question 24

What are the NIST selected post-quantum cryptography standards?

Answer 24

CRYSTALS-Kyber, CRYSTALS-Dilithium, FLACON, SPHINCS+.

Question 25

What is the NIST symmetric approved encryption standard?

Answer 25

AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) // the only widely used symmetric encryption standard

Question 26

What are the use cases for symmetric/asymmetric encryptions?

Answer 26

Symmetric: *bulk encryption *good efficiency with large datasets *fast encryption Asymmetric: *key exchange (to continue with the symmetric) *authentication *digital signatures

Question 27

What are the CIAN components of asymmetric encryption?

Answer 27

C-Confidentiality: only the recipient can decrypt the data I , A - Integrity/Authentication: creation of a hash digest of the message N - Non repudiation through digital signature; everybody with a public key can verify senders identity

Question 28

Name the Common Asymmetric Algorithms:

Answer 28

*Diffie-Hellman - used for key exchange and VPN tunnel establishment *RSA - key exchange, encryption, digital signatures, MFA *ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptography) - 6 times more efficient than RSA - therefore used for low-power computing; variants: ECDH (EC Diffie-Hellman); ECDHE (EC Diffie-Hellman Ephemeral; ECDSA (EC Digital Signature Algorithm)

Question 29

Name Common Hashing Algorithms:

Answer 29

*MD5 (Message Digest Alg 5) - legacy, not used anymore - led to collisions *SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm) - now third iteration (SHA-3) is used (224-512 bit hash digests) *RIPEMD (RACE Integrity Primitive Evaluation Message Digest) - opensource SHA competitor but less popular *HMAC (Hash Based Message Authentication Code) - always paired with other hash method; checks message integrity and authenticity

Question 30

Name common Signature Algorithms:

Answer 30

*DSA (Digital Security Algorithm) - used for digital signatures *RSA - digital signatures; encryption and key distribution (including code signing)

Question 31

Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Components are:

Answer 31

*Certificate Authority (issuer of certificates) *Registration Authority (middle man between users and CA) *Certification Revocation List (CRL) - *Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) - real time alternative to CRL (faster, less secure) *Digital Certificates - issues by CA to link a public key to an entity *Public/Private Keys *Key Management System (generation, storage, distribution and destruction) *Trust Model *End entities

Question 32

What's a Key Escrow?

Answer 32

A secure, third-party location for storing cryptographic keys; enables key retrieval in case of loss so that encrypted data is not permanently inaccessible if lost

Question 33

What are the types of Digital Certificates?

Answer 33

*Wildcard Certificate - one certificate applies to all subdomains *Subject Alternate Name (SAN) field - one certificate applies to not only subdomains but also a different sites related to the same Root Domain *Single-sided Certificate - only requires one server to be validated *Dual-sided - only for the really high security stuff; requires more processing power *Self-Signed Certificates - for testing or closed environments *Third Party Certificates (parties: DigiCert, GlobalSign, Sectigo, GoDaddy, Entrust)

Question 34

What is "Obsfucation"? What are the methods?

Answer 34

It's a process of obscuring the data so when it's captured it's harder to extract any valuable information. *steganography (message within a message) *tokenization (substitution of valid data with tokens of no intrinsic value) *data masking (disguising some parts of the information)