Brute Force Attack (BFA) is an attempt to break a password, through repeated attempts and from correcting potential password errors.
Get to know Brute Force Attack
Brute force attacks involve using complex software to flood the system with every potential password or key to find the correct value.
Theoretically, an attack like this could be used to guess any password or key and gain access to encrypted data.
The amount of time theoretically required to succeed in a brute force attack is used as a key measure of the strength of an encryption system.
Resources for Carrying Out a Brute Force Attack
The resources required to conduct a successful brute force attack on a well-secured system can be enormous. The amount of time required to guess a password grows exponentially (as opposed to linearly) as the password length increases. Therefore, the bit size of cryptographic keys has gradually increased, from the initial standard of 56 bits to the modern standard of 128 or 256 bits.
Use of Supercomputers
Cracking a 256-bit key requires enormous levels of computing power — so much so that serious brute force attacks are generally only possible using supercomputers. Supercomputers themselves require very controlled environmental conditions, and have very high energy requirements.
Therefore, the most sophisticated brute force attacks are generally thought to be carried out by a state. However, modern GPUs and specialized hardware known as ASICs — both have high availability and are well suited to the task of password cracking, and can be purchased by almost anyone.
Conclusion
Some forms of encryption are theoretically impenetrable by brute force attacks. This includes one-time pad cryptography. Instead of using brute force methods, unauthorized access to systems using this type of protection generally relies on exploiting human error in the system implementation.
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DISCLAIMER : This article is informational in nature and is not an offer or invitation to sell or buy any crypto assets. Trading crypto assets is a high-risk activity. Crypto asset prices are volatile, where prices can change randomly
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