What is Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS)? - Definition from Whatis.com

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Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS)

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Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS)

The Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS) are a set of intervendor standard protocols for making possible secure information exchange on the Internet using a public key infrastructure (PKI). The standards include RSA encryption, password-based encryption, extended certificate syntax, and cryptographic message syntax for S/MIME, RSA's proposed standard for secure e-mail. The standards were developed by RSA Laboratories in cooperation with a consortium that included Apple, Microsoft, DEC, Lotus, Sun, and MIT.

Related glossary terms: RSA algorithm (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman), data key, greynet (or graynet), spam cocktail (or anti-spam cocktail), fingerscanning (fingerprint scanning), munging, insider threat, authentication server, defense in depth, nonrepudiation

This was last updated in December 2000

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