ccrypt is a utility for the secure
encryption
In Cryptography law, cryptography, encryption (more specifically, Code, encoding) is the process of transforming information in a way that, ideally, only authorized parties can decode. This process converts the original representation of the inf ...
and decryption of
files
File or filing may refer to:
Mechanical tools and processes
* File (tool), a tool used to remove fine amounts of material from a workpiece.
**Filing (metalworking), a material removal process in manufacturing
** Nail file, a tool used to gentl ...
and
streams
A stream is a continuous body of surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to by a variety of local or regional names. Long, large stream ...
. It was designed as a replacement for the standard
UNIX
Unix (, ; trademarked as UNIX) is a family of multitasking, multi-user computer operating systems that derive from the original AT&T Unix, whose development started in 1969 at the Bell Labs research center by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, a ...
crypt
A crypt (from Greek κρύπτη (kryptē) ''wikt:crypta#Latin, crypta'' "Burial vault (tomb), vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, Sarcophagus, sarcophagi, or Relic, religiou ...
utility, which is notorious for using a very
weak encryption
Strong cryptography or cryptographically strong are general terms used to designate the cryptographic algorithms that, when used correctly, provide a very high (usually insurmountable) level of protection against any eavesdropper, including th ...
algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of Rigour#Mathematics, mathematically rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific Computational problem, problems or to perform a computation. Algo ...
.
ccrypt is based on the
Rijndael
The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), also known by its original name Rijndael (), is a specification for the encryption of electronic data established by the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2001.
AES is a variant ...
cypher, the same cipher used in the
AES standard. However, in the AES standard a 128-bit block size is used, whereas ccrypt uses a 256-bit block size. ccrypt commonly uses the
.cpt file extension for encrypted files.
ccrypt does not provide an
authenticated encryption
Authenticated Encryption (AE) is an encryption scheme which simultaneously assures the data confidentiality (also known as privacy: the encrypted message is impossible to understand without the knowledge of a secret key) and authenticity (in othe ...
scheme and therefore does not protect the integrity of encrypted data.
See also
*
bcrypt
bcrypt is a password-hashing function designed by Niels Provos and David Mazières. It is based on the Blowfish (cipher), Blowfish cipher and presented at USENIX in 1999. Besides incorporating a salt (cryptography), salt to protect against rain ...
*
crypt (Unix)
In Unix computing, crypt or enigma is a utility program used for encryption. Due to the ease of breaking it, it is considered to be obsolete.
The program is usually used as a filter, and it has traditionally been implemented using a "rotor ...
*
mcrypt
*
scrypt
In cryptography, scrypt (pronounced "ess crypt") is a password-based key derivation function created by Colin Percival in March 2009, originally for the Tarsnap online backup service. The algorithm was specifically designed to make it costly t ...
References
External links
ccrypt homepage
Cryptographic software
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