In our previous article, we discussed the various methods of storing files on the Arweave network, including the importance of encrypting files to protect them from being viewed by the public. Today, we'll be diving deeper into the topic of file protection on Arweave by focusing on the use of asymmetric encryption.
Asymmetric encryption, also known as public key encryption, is a method of encrypting and decrypting data using a pair of keys - a public key and a private key. The public key is used for encrypting data, while the private key is used for decrypting data.
When it comes to protecting files on the Arweave network, we can use asymmetric encryption to encrypt a symmetric key, which is then used to encrypt the data. For example, let's assume we're using AES-256 as our symmetric encryption algorithm. We'll first generate a random AES-256 key, then use our public key to encrypt it.
Next, we'll put the encrypted symmetric key, the IV (initialization vector) used for AES-256, and possibly additional data for AES-256-GCM in the Key-Value storage of an Arweave transaction. This is important as it allows us to retrieve the symmetric key later on, when we want to decrypt the data.
Once the symmetric key is encrypted and stored, we can then use it to encrypt the data. The encrypted data can then be put in the data part of the Arweave transaction.
By using asymmetric encryption to protect our files on Arweave, we can ensure that only those who have our private key will be able to decrypt and view the data. This provides an added layer of security, as even if someone were to access the transaction on the Arweave network, they would not be able to view the data without the private key.
It's worth noting that this process can be implemented in a variety of programming languages, including Rust, which is known for its security and performance.
In conclusion, using asymmetric encryption in conjunction with symmetric encryption is an effective method of protecting files on the Arweave network. By encrypting a symmetric key using our public key and storing it in an Arweave transaction, we can ensure that only those who have our private key will be able to decrypt and view the data. This provides an added layer of security, making Arweave a suitable option for storing sensitive information.