40 Algorithms Every Programmer Should Know

Understanding the Basic Design of Ciphers

Designing ciphers is about coming up with an algorithm that can scramble sensitive data so that a malicious process or an unauthorized user cannot access it. Although over time ciphers have become more and more sophisticated, the underlying principles that ciphers are based on remain unchanged.

Let's start by looking at some relatively simple ciphers that will help us understand the underlying principles that are used in the design of cryptographic algorithms.