Thesis (MSc) - Cyprus International University. Institute of Graduate Studies and Research Information Technologies Department

Includes bibliography (sheets 60-61)

ABSTRACT
In today's rapidly growing internet and network applications, encryption algorithms
play a critical role in ensuring information security. Encryption algorithms serve a key
role in guaranteeing information security in such applications. An internet-based
dynamic application and storage method, known as cloud computing, needs high
reliability, scalability and autonomy to support accessibility everywhere. With the
widespread use of cloud computing in our daily routines, protecting data has become
a major concern, particularly for non-technical users. The effectiveness of two
standard symmetric key encryption algorithms, AES and Blowfish, analyzed and
compared in terms of their throughput, power consumption, and encryption speed. The
simulation results show that AES outperforms Blowfish when considering security
flaws, however, it requires more processing resources. Hence, an efficient hybrid
security algorithm is proposed in order to secure the data in a cloud environment by
taking the advantageous of both approach in an encryption system for better utilization.
The performance analysis shows that the proposed hybrid approach ends up as an ideal
approach to encrypt and decode files with a large block size with longer keys and to
defend against Man in the Middle (MitM) attacks.
Keywords: AES, Algorithm, Encryption, BLOWFISH, Performance Analysis,