Cybersecurity
 | This page is incomplete. |
- This article is about a replacement event for that might not be run at every tournament. Please refer to instructions from your particular tournament before preparing for this event. For the event it replaces, see Ping Pong Parachute.
| Cybersecurity | |
|---|---|
| Type | Inquiry |
| Category | Lab |
| Official Resources | |
| Division B Website | www |
| Division C Website | www |
Cybersecurity is a Division B and Division C event that was first run as a trial event at the 2021 BEARSO Invitational to replace Ping Pong Parachute. The event consists of two parts: a written test on Cryptography and Web Architecture, and a hands on task on Cryptography and Programming. The event was also run at the November Scilympiad Practice, Yosemite Invitational, and Science Olympiad at Penn State Invitational.
Contents
Cryptography
Hash algorithms
A hash algorithm is a one-way function that maps data, such as a string or a file, to a hash, or a "digest" - a string of data that is much shorter in length. Hash functions are always deterministic. If two equal inputs are hashed two separate times, the digest will always be the same. A hash can be used as a checksum to validate that a file has not been altered, since if a single bit of information was changed, the checksum would change. Hash functions are also designed to decrease the risk of hash collisions. Since the hashed digest of an input reduces its size significantly, hash collisions can occur when two inputs map to the same output. Hash functions are used in digital signatures, signing and authentication algorithms, and passwords.
A good hash algorithm has the following characteristics:
- It is hard to find collisions.
- It is irreversible.
- It has to be deterministic.
Passwords are one of the most important applications of hashing algorithms. When a password is inputted, a hash of the password is calculated, and compared to the hashed value of your original password. Thus, no plaintext passwords should be saved server-side, which would reduce the damage in the event of a data breach.
Merkle-Damgård Hashes
MD5
SHA1
SHA2
Whirlpool
Hash Length Extension Attack
Hash Collisions
The XOR Operation
Bases
Hexadecimal
Base 64
Classical Cryptography
Substitution Ciphers
Transposition Ciphers
Frequency Analysis and Kaisiski Attack
Attacks on Classical Cryptosystems
- Chosen Plaintext Attacks
- Chosen Ciphertext Attacks
- Known Plaintext Attacks
RSA
Encoding Plaintext and Decoding Ciphertext
RSA Signatures
Certificates
Padding Schemes
Integer Factorization Problem
Small e Attack
Wiener's Attack
Coppersmith Attack
Hastad's Broadcast Attack
Partial Key Exposure Attack
Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange
Block Ciphers
Stream Ciphers
Elliptic Curve Cryptography
Post Quantum Cryptography
Quantum computers can break some cryptographic functions (e.g. prime factorization through Shor's algorithm). Post-quantum cryptography uses properties of quantum mechanics, such as entanglement, to protect against quantum computer attacks.
Web architecture
HTML/CSS/JS
Mozilla's web docs tend to be the most up-to-date repository for web technologies information. W3C Schools and Stack Overflow often don't follow industry best practices.
Protocols
Modern websites use HTTPS, a descendant of the Hypertext Transport Protocol (HTTP) that incorporates encryption through Transport Layer Security (TLS).
Programming
Primality algorithm:
