Transport Layer Security (TLS)
Transport Layer Security (TLS) is a cryptographic protocol that provides secure communication over the Internet. It is the most widely used security protocol today and is used to secure communications between web browsers and web servers, as well as other applications that require data to be securely exchanged over a network. TLS is an evolution of the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol, which was developed by Netscape in 1994.
TLS provides authentication, data integrity, and encryption for communications between two parties. Authentication ensures that the communicating parties are who they claim to be. Data integrity ensures that the data being exchanged has not been modified or corrupted in transit. Encryption ensures that only the intended recipient can read the data being sent.
TLS works by establishing a secure connection between two parties using public key cryptography. The client and server exchange public keys, which are used to encrypt and decrypt messages sent between them. The server also sends its certificate, which contains information about its identity and public key, to the client for authentication purposes. Once both parties have authenticated each other, they can begin exchanging encrypted messages using symmetric encryption algorithms such as AES or 3DES.
The TLS protocol is composed of two layers: the Record Protocol and the Handshake Protocol. The Record Protocol provides confidentiality and integrity for application data exchanged between two parties using symmetric encryption algorithms such as AES or 3DES. The Handshake Protocol establishes a secure connection between two parties by authenticating each other’s identity and exchanging session keys for use in encrypting subsequent messages sent over the connection.
TLS is an important part of ensuring secure communication over the Internet today. It provides authentication, data integrity, and encryption for communications between two parties, making it difficult for attackers to intercept or modify sensitive information being exchanged over a network connection. TLS is also backward compatible with SSL so it can be used with existing applications without requiring any changes to their codebase.
