Protect the Secret
Choose between hashing and encryption for a series of real-world needs, and justify each choice.
This challenge builds on the Cryptography lab. You can start right away, or open the lab first.
Open the Cryptography labNot started
An unfinished attempt isn't saved. Reloading the page starts it again; only completion is remembered, and only on this device.
Scenario
Papertrail's backup leaked
A copy of Papertrail's database backup is out. Before the fix ships you have to decide how four kinds of information should be protected. Start by looking at what the leak already shows: some protections only look protective.
Pick the right technique for each item, and know why the others don't fit.
Your objectives
- Know that encoding such as Base64 only changes the format and protects nothing.
- Use a hash for a fingerprint you compare, not for a value you need back.
- Store passwords with a slow password-hashing function such as Argon2id, never plain SHA-256.
- Use authenticated encryption such as AES-GCM when data must be read again and kept confidential.
Loading the experiment…
Everything here is fictional and runs in your browser. No real accounts, secrets or network requests are involved.