Forum Thread: Encryption

AES is an encryption standard, while MD5 is a digest function. You are comparing different things, If I understand your question.

Sorry, I thought they were both encryption (still new to this whole thing) what I mean is, why is one encryption better than another? Those two were just (supposed to be) examples.

Encryption algorithms are based on problem's intractability. If you can break an algorithm in 20000 years (with actual machines), it's considered a good algorithm. The unique unbreakable encryption is Vernam's algorithm (using a different key each time you encrypt) known as One Time Pad.

The algorithm behind it decides the strength of the encryption. But in the end, it's the decryption key the user picks that matters the most.

-Phoenix750

You're right, the user is the most important leak that exists in ANY system in the earth, but when you are comparing two encryption algorithms you can't rely on how stupid is the user (a good user must pick that key and put it in a secure place) but on how intractable is breaking the encryption.

Agreed.

-Phoenix750

What I've understood is that hackers start off by using a wordlist. When you have a program that can translate a wordlist into hashes, then what makes one more secure than the other.

Eg. if the password is "password", and you have a wordlist that contains "password". Then you use aircrack-ng to translate it to hashes and compare it to the original. Does it take longer time to translate to some encryptions than others? Does it make any sense what I'm saying?

Of course not all algorithms take equal time.