Geoff Bonallack wrote:
>
> >>Wouldn't 4 kb take a gazillion years to decrypt?
> >But it would be very, very, *very* secure.
>
> I'm not a crypto expert, but presumably once you get over a certain key size, it
> becomes a moot point?
Probably assuming no new developments in mathematics or computer technology
having to do with performance. But long before the key size makes discovering
it by brute force techniques difficult or "impossible", the folks desiring the
information will discover that it is much easier to attack the system or
operator
holding the key. That may consist of our teenager on our home computer
in which case an attractive "music file" may be sufficient to get
in compromising the key used for our digital signature for online
banking or voting, it may be the administrative staff at work getting a
new "departmental screen saver and virus update" by spoofed email
compromising our accounting system, or it may be someone who knows better
than running unknown code but failed to keep up with the myriad of patches
necessary to prevent crafted code from compromising their computer through
their browser, email client, media player, or other network capable
"end-user" software.
--
Gary Flynn
Security Engineer - Technical Services
James Madison University
Please R.U.N.S.A.F.E.
http://www.jmu.edu/computing/info-security/engineering/protecting_yourself.shtml
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