What Is Encryption And Decryption?

Encryption is the process of translating plain text data (plaintext) into something that appears to be random and meaningless (ciphertext). Decryption is the process of converting ciphertext back to plaintext.

In cryptography, encryption is the process of encoding messages or information in such a way that only authorized parties can access it. Encryption does not of itself prevent interference, but denies the message content to the interceptor. In an encryption scheme, the intended communication information or message, referred to as plaintext, is encrypted using an encryption algorithm, generating ciphertext that can only be read if decrypted. For technical reasons, an encryption scheme usually uses a pseudo-random encryption key generated by an algorithm. It is in principle possible to decrypt the message without possessing the key, but, for a well-designed encryption scheme, large computational resources and skill are required. An authorized recipient can easily decrypt the message with the key provided by the originator to recipients, but not to unauthorized interceptors.

The purpose of encryption is to ensure that only somebody who is authorized to access data (e.g. a text message or a file), will be able to read it, using the decryption key. Somebody who is not authorized can be excluded, because he or she does not have the required key, without which it is impossible to read the encrypted information.

Decryption is the process of taking encoded or encrypted text or other data and converting it back into text that you or the computer can read and understand. This term could be used to describe a method of un-encrypting the data manually or with un-encrypting the data using the proper codes or keys.

Data may be encrypted to make it difficult for someone to steal the information. Some companies also encrypt data for general protection of company data and trade secrets. If this data needs to be viewable, it may require decryption. If a decryption passcode or key is not available, special software may be needed to decrypt the data using algorithms to crack the decryption and make the data readable.