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Volume 4 | Issue 1 | Year 2025 | Article Id: DST-V4I1P101 DOI: https://doi.org/10.59232/DST-V4I1P101
The Validity of Kerckhoff’s Principle in the Era of Emerging Technologies: A Case Study of Cryptology in Wireless Telephony Services
Frankline Makokha
| Received | Revised | Accepted | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| 03 Jan 2025 | 05 Feb 2025 | 10 Mar 2025 | 31 Mar 2025 |
Citation
Frankline Makokha. “The Validity of Kerckhoff’s Principle in the Era of Emerging Technologies: A Case Study of Cryptology in Wireless Telephony Services.” DS Journal of Digital Science and Technology, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 1-10, 2025.
Abstract
Cryptosystems are meant to ensure that the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information carrying and storing medium is sustained. Various algorithms have been developed to actualize these cryptosystems. The algorithms comprise the instructions and the keys to implement the algorithms. According to Kerckhoff’s Principle, the instructions should be published while the key should be kept secret. Using a Systematic Literature Review, this paper analyzed the validity of this principle because of the power of emerging technologies, focusing on cryptosystems in wireless telephony services. From the findings, all encryption algorithms used in wireless telephony services do not abide by Kerckhoff’s Principle, they are proprietary and unpublished. However, this has not stopped reverse engineering the algorithms and making them public by various scientists. The algorithms have also been found to be susceptible to breach, but only in laboratory environments as proof of concept. The paper did not establish any breaches that were realized in commercial environments. Further, this paper found no causation or correlation between non-compliance with Kerckhoff’s Principle and cases of compromise of the algorithms. As to whether emerging technologies pose a risk to published algorithms, this paper established that emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Quantum `Computing are more inclined to strengthen existing cryptosystems through Crypto-Influenced AI (CIAI) and AI-Influenced Cryptography (AIIC) paradigms than being used to subvert them.
Keywords
AI-influenced cryptography, Crypto-influenced AI, Deep Learning, Kerckhoff’s principle, Quantum computing.
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