In this article I will be going over the basics of encryption algorithms. The reason I am posting this article is to hopefully familiarize people with what an encryption algorithm is, what kind of encryption algorithms there are, and how they are used. What is an encryption algorithm? An encryption algorithm is a mathematical formula that can be used to encrypt or decrypt files or text. When it encrypts a file or text it turns the file or text into a cipher text. In encryption algorithm each algorithm uses a string of bits also known as an encryption key. The more bits in an encryption key the more potential patterns can be created and the more bits/patterns the harder it is to crack which means it will be more secure. What kinds of encryption algorithms are there? When it comes to encryption algorithms there are tons of methods out there. In this part of the article I will be going over each type and what encryption goes with them. One of the types would be Private Key Algorithms. Private Key Algorithms are basicly single or shared encryption keys that are used for things such as bulk data encryption. Also Private Key Algorithms require both parties to know the secret key. Some of the encryption algorithms used for this type of algorithm would be DES, Blowfish, IDEA, LOKI, RC4. Another type of encryption would be the Public Key Algorithm. They are used for key validation and distribution. Some examples are Diffie-Hellman, ElGamal, RSA. Signature Algorithms are usually Public Key based and are used for key validation & distribution. Some of the algorithms include ElGamal, RSA, DSA. How are encryption algorithms used? Encryption algorithms are used to protect data. Lets say you want to send a file to a friend but you are afraid someone might sniff it change it and send it on to your friend. Well if you where to encrypt the file before you send it then who ever is sniffing for packets or files won't be able to see your file or even modify it because it wasn't meant for the person who was sniffing for the file. So basicly if there are any files that have information that you dont want others to get there hands on then you would want to encrypt it. How ever encrypted files can always be cracked by a brute forcer so a good practice would be to ecrypt your file with a good algorithm that is hard to crack.