Encryption for Beginners with OpenSSL

Install OpenSSL on an Ubuntu 18.04 machine, verify the existing installation and version, then run apt update and apt-get install OpenSSL to obtain the latest version.

Explore what encryption is and learn foundational concepts and common terms. Demonstrations on Ubuntu use the OpenSSL toolkit to illustrate symmetric and asymmetric encryption.

Encryption transforms data into an unreadable form readable only with secret information, protecting data at rest and in transit. It covers uses like email encryption, web traffic, and online transactions.

Explore how private and public keys form a key pair for public key encryption, and how OpenSSL generates keys for authentication and SSL certificates.

Define plaintext and ciphertext, and contrast symmetric encryption with the same key to asymmetric encryption with two keys, noting the Advanced Encryption Standard for symmetric encryption.

Explore key length and key space, from a four-digit pin to a 128-bit key, and see how binary bits yield 2^128 possible combinations.

Demonstrates encrypting an OpenSSL private key with a password and exporting a corresponding public key, detailing a two-step and a one-step approach to secure key handling.

Explore data integrity concepts and why they matter, learn how hash functions work, and see how to generate and verify hash values to validate downloaded files.

Explore how hash functions map data of arbitrary size to fixed-length digests. Learn how digests support data integrity, password storage, and download verification.

Explore encryption basics, including symmetric and asymmetric methods, and digital signatures; examine signer verification, SSL certificates, and OpenSSL workflows for creating and self-signing certificates via CSR.

Explore the basics of symmetric and asymmetric encryption, showing how a shared key encrypts and decrypts a document, and how public-private keys enable secure encryption.

Understand how digital signatures use a file’s hash encrypted with a private key to verify integrity and authenticate the sender.

Sign a document with OpenSSL rsautl by generating RSA keys, hashing the file with SHA-256, and creating a private key signature; the receiver verifies it with the public key.

Generate a private RSA key and CSR, submit the CSR to an SSL provider, pay for the certificate, then install the issued SSL certificate on your web server after validation.

Master the AWS free tier sign up process. Create an account with a valid email and password, enter payment details including a credit card, and complete phone verification.

Create and configure a VirtualBox virtual machine, selecting name, OS type, memory, and a dynamic VDI hard disk; attach an ISO and boot to install Windows 10.

Download the Ubuntu desktop image and create a virtual machine with it. Install Ubuntu by booting the VM, erasing disk, and setting up a user, restart and log in.