Encryption can be a useful deterrent in keeping sensitive information out of the hands of those not authorized and for maintaining the security of a network. Some encryption schemes utilize a secret key and a public key. Each person on the protected network has both a public and a secret key. Everyone who wants to be able to send encrypted information to another person on the network uses the public key. The recipient then uses a secret key to decrypt the information sent. A user must have a secret key to unlock the information.
Explain the difference between symmetric and asymmetric keys.
Symmetric and asymmetric keys are very similar in their use. With symmetric keys, both the sender and the receiver use the same secret key for encryption and decryption. One of the drawbacks with symmetric keys is that if the key is compromised on one end, it is compromised on both ends.
With asymmetric keys, also known as public key encryption, the sender and the receiver each use a different key for encryption and decryption. These keys are known as the public key and a secret key. The public key is used to encrypt data, which the recipient can then decrypt using the secret key.
Explain the difference between digital certificate and digital postmark.
In simplest terms, a digital certificate is an attachment to an electronic message used for security
Explain the difference between file security and firewalls.
Firewalls provide a barrier between internal networks and the outside world. Firewalls can be used anywhere there is data transferred between two systems. Individual computers can each have their personal firewall for filtering data. Firewalls are a filtering system to determine information that is allowed and what is not allowed to pass through it. One common use of a firewall is to determine which ports can have data sent through them and to the internal network.
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