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  • #2084339

    Role of SSL and the Security around it?

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    by isabelle_irani ·

    Could you explain in laymen terms exactly what an SSL accomplishes? How secure is it? Does it have the ability to protect large data files?
    Is it true that when a user digitally signs and encrypts data over the Internet it places a “hole” in the eBusiness’ existing firewall (what happened with CD Universe stolen credit card numbers)? If so, how can you prevent this?

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    • #3774642

      Role of SSL and the Security around it?

      by guy ·

      In reply to Role of SSL and the Security around it?

      Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is for encrypting or scrambling data.
      The idea is that there are two keys (public and private), but instead of being identical they are asymetric. One key encrypts the message and the other decrypts. When the packet is sent over the internet no-one can decrypts it. The 128 level encryption is considered secure. e.g. if a hacker was lucky and intercepted one of your packets it would take 2 cray computers a week to crack it.

      I imagine that the credit card numbers were stolen because they were saved as unencrypted files on the Web server itself. They should have a) been kept on a different server, b) protected by NTFS permissions, and c) preferably Windows 2000 file encryption.

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