CRYPTANALYSIS
Cryptanalysis is a process of finding weaknesses in cryptographic algorithms and using these
weaknesses to decipher the ciphertext without knowing the secret key. Sometimes the
weakness is not in the cryptographic algorithm itself, but rather in how it is applied that makes
cryptanalysis successful. Attacking a cipher or a cryptographic system may lead to breaking it
fully or only partially. After compromising the security, the attacker may obtain various
amounts and kinds of information.
o Total break: deducing and obtaining a secret key.
o Global deduction: discovering an algorithm, which allows to decrypt many messages,
without knowing the actual secret key.
o Local deduction: discovering an original plaintext of the specific given ciphertext.
o Information deduction: obtaining some information about the secret key or original
message (for example, a few bits of the key or information about a plaintext format).
Cryptanalysis techniques and attacks
There are many different types of cryptanalysis attacks and techniques, which vary depending
on how much information the analyst has about the ciphertext being analyzed. Some
cryptanalytic methods include:
In a ciphertext-only attack (COA) or known ciphertext attack (KCA), the attacker only has
access to one or more encrypted messages but knows nothing about the plaintext data, the
encryption algorithm being used or any data about the cryptographic key being used. This is
the type of challenge that intelligence agencies often face when they have intercepted
encrypted communications from an opponent.
In a known-plaintext attack (KPA), the attacker has access to the ciphertext and its
corresponding plain text. The attacker uses this knowledge in an attempt to guess the
secret keys or codebooks, allowing the attacker to decrypt the rest of the messages. Known-
plaintext attacks are most effective when used on less complex ciphers, such as simple
substitution ciphers, in which each letter is substituted with a fixed substitute character.
In a chosen-plaintext attack (CPA), the attacker sends plain text to be encrypted and
analyzes the returned ciphertext in an attempt to deduce the private key used for
decryption. This attack is feasible against asymmetric key cryptography because the public
key, the key used for encrypting the messages, is, as its name states, public.
Man-in-the-middle attacks occur when cryptanalysts find ways to insert themselves into
the communication channel between two parties who wish to exchange their keys for
secure communication via asymmetric or public key infrastructure. The attacker then
performs a key exchange with each party, with the original parties believing they are
exchanging keys with each other. The two parties then end up using keys that are known to
the attacker.
To defend against this attack, a strong mutual authentication method must be used before
starting transmission of secret data. The other way of protection is to use known public
keys, which can be reach from for example known databases, instead of using
any encryption key obtained from one of the sides of the communication (so in this case
- from the attacker).
There are eight types of man in the middle attacks:
1. DNS spoofing.
2. IP spoofing.
3. Wi-Fi eavesdropping
4. HTTPS spoofing.
5. SSL hijacking.
6. Email hijacking.
7. Session Hijacking
8. Man in the Browser