DeutschThe term cryptography comes from ancient Greek and means something like hidden or secret. It is the science of encrypting information, at least that is the original idea. Nowadays, it covers a much broader area and deals with topics such as information security, the construction of information systems and the conception of certain encryption systems.
What are the Goals of this Science?
Cryptography as such works with encryption, so that, for example, certain information is not publicly accessible and you often need a kind of code to decrypt the information. There are essentially four goals, which are still pursued today, namely:
- Integrity
- Commitment
- Authenticity
- Confidentiality
Authenticity, for example, means that all senders of data and messages that are encrypted can be identified. At the very least, however, the recipient of the data or messages should be able to check who the sender or originator is.
An important element is also confidentiality, because it must of course be ensured that only the person who should receive and read the message from the sender’s point of view actually receives it. However, you should know that not every cryptography-based method pursues all four of these goals.
Bitcoin as the First Currency Based on Cryptography
With Bitcoin, the first digital currency was created in 2009, which functions entirely on this basis, or more precisely on the basis of cryptographic algorithms. In the field of cryptocurrencies, the so-called blockchain is the heart of the cryptography system. Simply put, it is a constantly expanding block file that contains all Bitcoin transactions made. Without cryptography as a basis, cryptocurrencies would not work today, because all digital currencies are based on this encryption technology.
