Symmetric Key

Properties

name

Symmetric Key

definition

A symmetric key is a single key used for both encryption and decryption and used with a symmetric-key algorithm. Symmetric-key algorithms are algorithms for cryptography that use the same cryptographic keys for both encryption of plaintext and decryption of ciphertext. The keys may be identical or there may be a simple transformation to go between the two keys. The keys, in practice, represent a shared secret between two or more parties that can be used to maintain a private information link. This requirement that both parties have access to the secret key is one of the main drawbacks of symmetric key encryption, in comparison to public-key encryption (also known as asymmetric key encryption).

see also

http://dbpedia.org/resource/Symmetric-key_algorithm