Key Takeaways
Encryption is a means of securing data by encoding it mathematically such that it can only be read, or decrypted, by those with the correct key or cipher.
Can encrypted data be decrypted?
Encrypted data can only be read or processed after it has been decrypted, using a decryption key or password. Only the sender and the recipient of the data should have access to the decryption key.
Can encryption be cracked?
Today's encryption algorithms can be broken. Their security derives from the wildly impractical lengths of time it can take to do so. ... If a quantum system had to crack a 256-bit key, it would take about as much time as a conventional computer needs to crack a 128-bit key.
