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EC-Council

312-50V13 · Question #510

You are the lead cybersecurity analyst at a multinational corporation that uses a hybrid encryption system to secure inter-departmental communications. The system uses RSA encryption for key…

The correct answer is C. Data encryption with AES-128: Provides moderate security and fast encryption, offering a balance. For a hybrid encryption system balancing security and performance, AES-128 is the best choice for data encryption, offering strong security with high efficiency.

Submitted by ashley.k· Mar 6, 2026Cryptography

Question

You are the lead cybersecurity analyst at a multinational corporation that uses a hybrid encryption system to secure inter-departmental communications. The system uses RSA encryption for key exchange and AES for data encryption, taking advantage of the strengths of both asymmetric and symmetric encryption. Each RSA key pair has a size of 'n' bits, with larger keys providing more security at the cost of slower performance. The time complexity of generating an RSA key pair is O(n*2), and AES encryption has a time complexity of O(n). An attacker has developed a quantum algorithm with time complexity O((log n)*2) to crack RSA encryption. Given *n=4000' and variable `AES key size', which scenario is likely to provide the best balance of security and performance?

Options

  • AData encryption with 3DES using a 168-bit key: Offers high security but slower performance due
  • BData encryption with Blowfish using a 448-bit key: Offers high security but potential compatibility
  • CData encryption with AES-128: Provides moderate security and fast encryption, offering a balance
  • DData encryption with AES-256: Provides high security with better performance than 3DES, but not

How the community answered

(17 responses)
  • A
    18% (3)
  • B
    6% (1)
  • C
    47% (8)
  • D
    29% (5)

Why each option

For a hybrid encryption system balancing security and performance, AES-128 is the best choice for data encryption, offering strong security with high efficiency.

AData encryption with 3DES using a 168-bit key: Offers high security but slower performance due

3DES using a 168-bit key is significantly slower than AES and, despite its key length, its effective security strength is lower due to meet-in-the-middle attacks, making it a less optimal choice for performance and modern security needs.

BData encryption with Blowfish using a 448-bit key: Offers high security but potential compatibility

Blowfish with a 448-bit key is an older algorithm that is not as widely standardized or hardware-optimized as AES, potentially leading to slower performance and compatibility issues compared to AES.

CData encryption with AES-128: Provides moderate security and fast encryption, offering a balanceCorrect

AES-128 provides a strong level of security that is currently considered robust against known attacks, while offering significantly better performance (faster encryption and decryption) compared to AES-256 or older algorithms like 3DES, thus striking an excellent balance for general-purpose secure communications.

DData encryption with AES-256: Provides high security with better performance than 3DES, but not

AES-256 offers higher security than AES-128 but comes with a slight performance penalty due to its larger key size and more rounds, making AES-128 a better choice when a balance of security and *optimal* performance is desired.

Concept tested: Encryption algorithm selection and performance

Source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/api/wincrypt/nf-wincrypt-cryptsetkeyparam

Topics

#symmetric encryption#AES#cryptographic algorithms#key strength

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