AES performs operations on bytes of data rather than in bits. Since the block size is 128 bits, the cipher processes 128 bits (or 16 bytes) of the input data at a time.
That means it takes 128 bits as input and outputs 128 bits of encrypted cipher text. AES relies on the substitution-permutation network principle, which is performed using a series of linked operations that involve replacing and shuffling the input data.
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AES, or Advanced Encryption Standard, was released in late 2001, and was adopted by the U.S federal government in May 2002. AES encryption is moreover known as Rijndael, but this is its less common name.
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Encryption stands as one of the key technologies that keep our data safe from prying eyes. There are several kinds of encryption standards out there today, including AES-128 and AES-256. But what's the difference between these two, and which is better?
AES uses symmetric encryption, meaning the same key is used to encrypt and decrypt data . In the symmetric encryption process, AES uses a block cipher algorithm, which uses fixed-length groups of bits. In encryption terms, bits refer to the length of the key used to encode data.
