Quote:
Originally Posted by bash
Hacked is a highly qualified statement. There's lots of components of communication systems that can be "hacked". Some parts are much easier than others, the encryption systems tends to sit more on the computationally infeasible end of the spectrum. Most successful hacks are more on the user side of a system like brute force guessing poorly generated/reused encryption keys.
So I'm definitely not saying systems are unhackable, it's just the PCs aren't going to be able to "hack" encrypted comms with a pre-TDM laptop they might have with them. Even if they were hauling around a supercomputer they couldn't expect to brute force any military encryption.
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Some examples of the use of brute force, from RSA Labs Encryption Challenges, using
distributed networks, not a stand-alone machine.
• 56-bit cracked in 250 days by 16,738 total participants
• 64-bit cracked in 1757 days (4.8 years) by 327,856 participants
• 72-bit remains uncracked after 7,241 days (19.8 years) and 143,497 participants (projected time remaining 27,828 days (76+ years))
To me, the question isn’t, Can you crack the encryption?, but Is it worth doing so? In the case of the above 72-bit key, even if you manage to crack it, does a single decrypt (or even a whole day’s worth of decrypts) provide any usable intelligence decades after the fact?