What is DES?
DES (Data Encryption Standard) is a symmetric cipher defined in Federal Information Processing (FIPS) Standard Number 46 in 1977 as the federal government approved encryption algorithm for sensitive but non-classified information.
DES was developed by IBM and was based upon IBM's earlier Lucifer cipher.
DES utilizes a 56-bit key. This key size is vulnerable to a brute force attack using current technology.
Triple DES
A variant of DES, Triple DES, provides significantly enhanced security by executing the core DES algorithm three times in a row. The has the effect of making the DES encryption much more difficult to brute force. Triple-DES is estimated to be 2 to the 56th times more difficult to break than DES. Triple DES can still be considered a secure encryption algorithm. Triple DES is also written as 3-DES or 3DES.
DES and AES
DES is being replaced by AES, the Advanced Encryption Standard.
DES and Triple-DES will remain in service for many decades.
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