Both are sent to the recipient, who uses their private key to unlock the shorter key, then decrypt the full message.

The public key is used to encrypt the shorter version that encrypted the full message. PGP compresses plaintext data, which saves on disk space and transmission time, as well as reinforces cryptographic security. Step 3: The message sender submits their session key, then the recipient can decrypt the message using their private key.Įncrypting entire messages can take a long time, but PGP encrypts it using a faster algorithm.The recipient shares that key with anyone they want to receive messages from. Step 2: The session key is then encrypted using the recipient’s public key, which protects the message while being transmitted.Step 1: PGP generates a huge, one-time-use public encryption algorithm that cannot be guessed, which becomes the random session key.It combines private-key and public-key cryptography and the use of symmetric and asymmetric key technology to encrypt data as it travels across networks. A message is encrypted when a user sends it to someone using their public key, then decrypted when the recipient opens it with their private key.

PGP uses the public key system in which every user has a unique encryption key known publicly and a private key that only they know. It is similar to other popular encryption methods such as Kerberos, which authenticates network users, secure sockets layer (SSL), which secures websites, and the Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), which protects data in motion. PGP works through a combination of cryptography, data compression, and hashing techniques.

This allows PGP to be used for encrypting and decrypting text messages, emails, and files. The data encryption program provides cryptographic authentication and privacy for data used in online communication. Later, it was standardized and supported by other applications such as email. It has now become a core standard in email security and has been widely used to protect individuals and organizations. Originally, it was used to enable individual users to communicate on bulletin board system computer servers. PGP was one of the first public-key cryptography software publicly available for free. PGP aims to solve this and enhance email security by encrypting the data to make the communication method more private. PGP software was owned and sold by a company called PGP Corporation, which was founded in 2002 then sold to Symantec in 2010.Įmail is a prime attack method for cyber criminals who can easily forge messages using a victim’s name or identity. PGP was first designed and developed in 1991 by Paul Zimmerman, a political activist. Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) is a security program used to decrypt and encrypt email and authenticate email messages through digital signatures and file encryption.

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