Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP) — Question 116

Which of the following ASYMMETRIC encryption algorithms is based on the difficulty of FACTORING LARGE NUMBERS?

Answer options

• A. El Gamal
• B. Elliptic Curve Cryptosystems (ECCs)
• C. RSA
• D. International Data Encryption Algorithm (IDEA)

Correct answer: C

Explanation

RSA is the correct answer as it is specifically designed around the mathematical difficulty of factoring large prime numbers to ensure security. El Gamal also uses asymmetric encryption but is based on the discrete logarithm problem, while ECCs leverage elliptic curves for security. IDEA is a symmetric encryption algorithm and does not fall under asymmetric encryption methods.