Have you ever wondered how the data on your devices stays safe? A large part of the answer lies in a powerful encryption algorithm called AES (Advanced Encryption Standard). But AES has a fascinating backstory that begins with an algorithm named Rijndael.
The Birth of Rijndael
Dr. Mike Pound's video (
youtube.com/watch?v=VYech-c5…) offers a great introduction to Rijndael. Designed by Joan Daemen and Vincent Rijmen, this algorithm was one of many contenders in a competition held by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the late 1990s. Their goal? To find a new encryption standard to replace the aging Data Encryption Standard (DES).
Rijndael stood out for its elegance, security, and efficiency. It offered a family of ciphers with varying key and block sizes, allowing for flexibility. After a rigorous evaluation process, NIST selected a specific subset of Rijndael – with a 128-bit block size and three key lengths (128, 192, and 256 bits) – to become the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) in 2001.
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