A Comprehensive Study of Data Encryption and Security Mechanisms

Abstract

The study has been developed to produce a single software program that will allow the user to encrypt and decrypt electronic files and to provide a method to communicate securely via email by using encryption techniques and the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) algorithm. The project will use the advanced encryption algorithm AES in Counter Mode (CTR), which will provide a method for encrypting digital data securely. This project will evaluate the use of the encryption process and reliability during the decryption process and evaluate whether or not the secure email function has been implemented correctly. The project's goal is also to support ongoing efforts to improve security surrounding the transmission of digital communication using current state-of-the-art cryptographic systems. The proposed implementation derives AES-256 keys using PBKDF2, generates cryptographically secure nonces for each encryption session, stores user credentials using salted password hashes, and protects encrypted files using HMAC-SHA256 integrity verification. Secure email transmission is achieved through SMTP over TLS.