Encryption & Authentication

Question 1

What is Data Protection/Encryption?

Answer 1

1. Data protection refers to keeping personal and potentially sensitive information safe from unauthorised access
2. Protecting our data is essential to ensuring safety and privacy in the IT world
3. Authentication and encryption are two methods which allow us to protect and secure data

Question 2

What is Authentication?

Answer 2

Passwords:

• type in characters from the keyboard
• more complex passwords are more secure
• long passwords are more secure

Biometrics:

• using part of the body to gain access
• this may replace password access
• eg. finger print access to a device (fingerprint recognition from wikipedia)
• has two phases. 1. Digitise the information into a database (eg your scanned fingerprint) 2. Access the device with the digitised information (your fingerprint) which matches the version in the database.
• body parts being digitised are scanned by; finger scanner, hand scanner, face scanner, retina scanner and voice scanner

Question 3

What is a Digital Signature?

Answer 3

1. making one in Adobe Reader; (first part and last part of this video are worthwhile)
2. this is NOT just copying an image of your signature onto a letter or document
3. this is a mathematical method to keep digital documents or message secure
4. commonly used in banking or any organisation to ensure security

Question 4

Public and Private key encryption

Answer 4

• Public key cryptography allows someone to send their public key in an open, insecure channel.
• Having a friend’s public key allows you to encrypt messages to them.
• Your private key is used to decrypt messages encrypted to you.