Symmetric-key cryptography is a term used for cryptographic algorithms that use the same key for encryption and for decryption. The key is usually called a "symmetric key" or a "secret key". This is usually contrasted with , in which keys are generated in pairs and the transformation made by one key can only be reversed using the other key. public-key cryptography Symmetric-key algorithms should be secure when used properly and are highly efficient, so they can be used to encrypt large amounts of data without having a negative effect on performance. Most symmetric-key algorithms currently in use are block ciphers: this means that they encrypt data one block at a time. The size of each block is fixed and determined by the algorithm: for example uses 16-byte blocks. AES Block ciphers are always used with a , which specifies how to securely encrypt messages that are longer than the block size. For example, AES is a cipher, while CTR, CBC, and GCM are all modes. Using an inappropriate mode, or using a mode incorrectly, can completely undermine the security provided by the underlying cipher. mode View Previous Terms: Block cipher mode of operation Certificate authority Challenge-response authentication Cipher Cipher suite Ciphertext CORS CORS-safelisted request header CORS-safelisted response header Cross-site scripting Cryptanalysis Cryptographic hash function Cryptography CSP CSRF Decryption Digital certificate DTLS (Datagram Transport Layer Security) Encryption Forbidden header name Forbidden response header name Hash HMAC HPKP HSTS HTTPS Key MitM OWASP Preflight request Public-key cryptography Reporting directive Robots.txt Same-origin policy Session Hijacking SQL Injection TOFU Transport Layer Security (TLS) Credits Source: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Glossary/Symmetric-key_cryptography Published under license Open CC Attribution ShareAlike 3.0

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Glossary of Security Terms: Symmetric-Key Cryptography

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