 GnuPG:
An Open Solution to Data Protection
D. Hageman
It has often been said that changing times dictate changes
in the way we interact with the world around us. In today's
world, the movement of private communications to the public arena
of the Internet is no exception to this rule. Businesses and individuals
are now finding the need to utilize computer networks to facilitate
their communications, and these transmissions of data need to be
protected from the prying eyes of the public. Phil Zimmerman recognized
this need, and in 1991 he created an application for protecting
data called Pretty Good Privacy (PGP). This software soon became
the primary program used for securing email communication. However,
changing times have again dictated that a new contender enter the
ring. This software is Gnu Privacy Guard.
What is Gnu Privacy Guard ?
Gnu
Privacy Guard (GnuPG or GPG), is an open, patent-free encryption
application whose main purpose is to protect communication and secure
data archives. It achieves this goal by implementing a hybrid cipher
system that utilizes both a symmetric cipher system and a public-key
cipher system. A symmetric cipher is a system that uses a single
key for encryption and decryption of data. One problem of using
only this type of cryptography system for securing communications
is that all parties must know and agree upon the key.
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