ENHANCED ENCRYPTION-DECRYPTION

ALGORITHM BASED ON NUMERICAL

METHODS

April 23, 2022

Written and Submitted By

Daniel Giftson - 20110051
Jinay Dagli - 20110084
Mumuksh Tayal - 20110116
Kush Patel - 20110131
Patel Vrajesh - 20110134

Under the guidance of

Prof. Satyajit Pramanik

Prof. Tanya Srivastava

Prof. Uddipta Ghosh

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MA 202 Project Report Semester-2 Spring 2022

Contents

1 Introduction 3
1.1 Important terms to know before going ahead . . . . . 3
1.2 Symmetric Key Exchange Algorithms . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3 Assumptions taken . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2 Solution Methodology 4
2.1 Mathematical Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.2 A Brief idea about our approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

3 Algorithm and Approach for encryption and decryption 6

3.1 Encryption algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.2 Decryption algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.3 Diffie-Hellman Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

4 Numerical Methods 7
4.1 Bisection Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.2 Newton-Raphson Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.3 Secant Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

5 Python code and Results 10

6 Observations and Conclusions 11

7 Future Scope 12

8 Contributions 12

9 References and Bibliography 12

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Abstract

Cryptography is not a new concept. Rather, it has been in use for thousands of years now. It
is the study of mathematical methods pertaining to aspects of security of information like data
integrity, authentication, confidentiality, and data origin authentication. It does not only mean
hiding information. Rather it is a set of techniques which can be implemented to code a data,
send it to the intended receiver, and should be easily unpackable by them.

Keywords: Encryption, Decryption, Diffie-Hellman Algorithm,Cryptography, Steganogra-

phy, Bisection method, Newton-Raphson method, Fixed-Point iteration.

1 Introduction
Information security has become a significant issue in today’s generation. With the increase in
various threats and risks in the digital domains, there is an increasing need to come up with and
develop newer ways of encrypting one’s crucial data and information. Therefore, an extra layer
of protection shield is usually added on top of the basic encryption-decryption setup with the
help of steganography. Steganography is a widely preferred and implemented technique due to
the extra security that it provides. This is what we would like to focus on during this project.

1.1 Important terms to know before going ahead

1. ASCII values: ASCII was the first encoding standard (character set) used across the
computers on internet. It is a 7-bit character set containing 128 characters.

2. Encryption-Decryption: Encryption is the process of converting a plain (often important)

text to a meaningless message, which is called Cipher-text. On the other hand, decryption
is the reverse process of encryption, that is, converting the cipher-text back to the plain
message.

Figure 1: Representation of encryption-decryption algorithm

3. Cryptography: Cryptography, derived from the Greek word kryptos, are techniques that
allow the secure transfer of data, and only the sender and the receiver know the actual
contents of the message. There are two types of cryptography:

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• Symmetric Key Cryptography-> The sender as well as the receiver use a single,
common key.
• Asymmetric Key Cryptography-> Also called public-key steganography, it uses two
related keys: a public key and a private key.

4. Steganography: Steganography is also a method of encrypting data, the only difference

being that it encrypts data in a non-susceptible manner. For example,playing an audio
track backwards to reveal the stored message.

1.2 Symmetric Key Exchange Algorithms

There are a number of symmetric key exchange algorithms. Most basic ones are AES, IDEA,
RC4, RC5, and many more. Practically, these algorithms are not too secure. Key generated
through AES can be detected by our computer in one day and the key generated through other
algorithms can also be detected in a couple of days. Hence, we as a group decided to use one
of the most secure algorithms - Diffie Hellman. Theoretically it is possible to detect the key
but practically it is not feasible since it takes almost a year to crack it since there is loss of
data during data transfer period. For encrypted communication between two people, they first
need to exchange secret keys by any physical means. This key exchange method enables two
people who have no prior knowledge of each other to use their own secret keys and subsequently
establish a communication jointly using a symmetric key cipher.
It could be easily observed from the image how the Diffie Hellman Key Exchange works!

1.3 Assumptions taken

1. The function f(x) taken for generating cipher text is used only for the purpose of explaining
the use of Numerical Methods. Practically much more complex one-way functions are
used.

2. We are only assuming communication between two users. Practically, for multiple users,
the algorithm can be run in a cyclic form.

3. The tolerance is assumed to be 0.001 in all the numerical methods.

2 Solution Methodology
2.1 Mathematical Approach
In the practical world, one way functions are the functions which can be computed easily. It is
like finding f(x) at a given value of x, but when we talk about images then it is difficult to obtain
an image from a random input. One way functions are used to give an unique address to the
input but there is no way to go back to get the original input. So naturally, one way functions
are used in cryptography to encode the messages.

We can also check or verify whether they are accurate or not by knowing the input and output
form the original phase. As part of this project, we have used three different types of numerical
methods to approximate the root of the one way function in cryptography. From the conclusion
perspective, we have compared the iterations and results of all the methods.

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Figure 2: Diffie Hellman Key Exchange

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2.2 A Brief idea about our approach

There are many algorithms in order to enhance the encryption method but our project aims
to implement a symmetric encryption-decryption algorithm. As we have mentioned above,
encryption is done by the one-way function and Diffie-Hellman is used to encrypt it.

For the encryption purpose, we have used numerical methods to determine the roots of the
one-way, which is the cipher-text for our message. Decryption follows the exact opposite ap-
proach. We would also compare and present the results about the performance of the various
numerical methods.

3 Algorithm and Approach for encryption and decryption

3.1 Encryption algorithm
1. We convert the text message to a decimal number (the ASCII values of the letters).

2. The Diffie-Hellman algorithm is used to get the one-way function f(x) and the secret keys
required by the user and the receiver.

3. Once we have the function f(x), we use one of the numerical methods to solve f(x) =
ASCII value of the text message for x. The root of this equation gives us the cipher-text.

4. We now get the array of the solutions of the equation, which represents the encrypted data.

3.2 Decryption algorithm

The decryption algorithm is just the opposite of the encryption algorithm. It is as follows:

1. We have the array of solution for the equation representing the encrypted data. We can
put these values into the equation to get the value of f(x).

2. This value of f(x) is equal to the ASCII value of the text message.

3. From this we can get back the original message.

3.3 Diffie-Hellman Algorithm

1. The sender and receiver agree on using the same prime number p and base g.

2. The sender chooses a secret key(integer) a and sends the receiver a value k = ga mod(p).

3. Similarly, the receiver chooses a secret key(integer) b and sends the sender a value m =
gb mod(p).

4. The sender finds s = gm mod(p), while the receiver finds s = gk mod(p).

5. The sender and the receiver now have the same secret key s.

Example of Diffie-Hellman Algorithm: Consider that the public keys p and g are 13 and 6
respectively. The sender Alice is allocated a private key a = 4 and the receiver Bob is allocated
a private key b = 2. The private keys are not known to anyone else.

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Note that p is greater then g. The intermediate key generated by sender Alice is given by
ga mod(p) which is equal to 9. The intermediate key generated by Bob is given by gb mod(p)
which is equal to 10. Now the secret key is given by gab mod(p) which is equal to 3. The secret
key will be the same either ways because the Diffie-Hellman Algorithm is a symmetric key
exchange algorithm.

4 Numerical Methods
The solution of equations of the form f(x)=0 is obtained in many applications. If a polynomial
f(x) is of degree two or three, exact formulae are obtainable. But, on the other hand, if f(x) is
a polynomial of a higher order or is a transcendental function, the solution does not exist. In
these cases, numerical methods are very important to find the approximate root. We would be
describing the following numerical methods and use them to find the one-way function.

4.1 Bisection Method

Figure 3: Bisection Method

The bisection method or interval halving is a type of incremental search method (locating
an interval where function changes sign), where the search interval is always divided into half.
If the function changes sign in this interval, we know that the root lies in this interval.
Stage 1: If for an interval f(x1 )f(x2 )<0, at least one root is there!
Let
(x1 + x2 )
xm =
2
.
Stage 2: We then compute f(xm ) and check for sign change between x1 and xm or x2 and xm .
One of the intervals will be discarded.

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• If f(x1 )f(x2 )=0, xm is the root. End the iterations hereafter.

• If f(x1 )f(xm )<0, the root lies in interval (x1 ,xm ). Repeat Stage 1 with x2 = xm .

• If f(xm )f(x2 )<0, the root lies in interval (xm ,x2 ). Repeat Stage 1 with x1 = xm .
This is repeated at every stage until the iterations are stopped.
Stage 3: While coding, we stop the iterations when the error at that stage.The error at the (i+1)th
stage is given by:

(i+1) xm (i+1) − xm (i)

Ea =
xm (i+1)

4.2 Newton-Raphson Method

Figure 4: Newton-Raphson Method

Newton-Raphson Method, or simply called Newton’s method, is a numerical method where

we try to find the root of a function using an initial guess x0 and approximating the function by
its tangent line.
Stage 1: We consider an initial guess x = x0 as the root of the function f(x).
Stage 2: The approximation of the root at the (i+1)th iteration is given by:

f (xi )
xi+1 = xi − (1)
f ′ (xi )

Stage 3: While coding, we stop the iterations when the error at that stage.The error at the (i+1)th
stage is given by:

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MA 202 Project Report Semester-2 Spring 2022

xm (i+1) − xm (i)
E a (i+1) =
xm (i+1)

4.3 Secant Method

Figure 5: Secant method

The secant method is a recursive method for finding the root for polynomials by successive
approximation.
In the secant method, we approximate the neighbourhoods of the roots by a secant line or chord
to the function f(x).
Stage 1: We consider two initial guesses x = x0 and x = x1 as the neighbourhoods of the roots
of the function f(x).
Stage 2: The approximation of the root at the (i+1)th iteration is given by:

(xi+1 − xi )f (xi )
xi+1 = xi − (2)
f (xi+1 ) − f (xi )

Stage 3: While coding, we stop the iterations when the error at that stage.The error at the (i+1)th
stage is given by:

xm (i+1) − xm (i)
E a (i+1) =
xm (i+1)

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5 Python code and Results

As an example we have used the following plain text:

Figure 6: Original Text

The encrypted text (that is, the cipher text) that we obtained after using function f(x) as (Secret
Key)x3 - 2.7x - (ASCII) = 0 is shown below:

Figure 7: Encrypted Text (Cipher Text)

The decrypted text that we obtained using the decryption code is shown below:

Figure 8: Decrypted Text (Same as the original text)

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Figure 9: Plot of Computation Time vs Number of characters

6 Observations and Conclusions

Figure 10

1. The results of the comparison show that the Newton-Raphson method and Secant method
are quite efficient, while methods like Bisection method do not work very efficiently for a
larger length of text.

2. From Figure 6, it can be very well observed that the Newton-Raphson method and the
Secant method take very less time and very less iterations for encrypting the same text
message.

3. The results we obtained hold with our general expectation that the Newton-Raphson
method and the Secant method takes lesser time to converge.

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MA 202 Project Report Semester-2 Spring 2022

7 Future Scope
• We have used text-to-text encryption, that is, we are encrypting the required text in some
other non-susceptible text.
This encryption can be extended to more complex steganography techniques, such as
encrypting text in an image, or even more complex such as, encrypting an image in a
video file.

• Further we can extend the study to compare the results for other numerical methods as
well, such as the Brent’s method, Runge-Kutta method,etc.

• In the current world, there is a possibility of the insecurity of the data through encryption.
Researchers are still looking for more secure encryption. There may exist some futuristic
encryption method like Honey Encryption, in which information is created by wrong
guess that looks like accurate, Quantum key encryption, where quantum atoms protects
the data, Functional Encryption, where restricted secret keys enable a key holder to learn
about only a specific function of encrypted data and nothing else.

8 Contributions
All of our team members contributed to the successful completion of the project, and worked
hard and well above their potential. However the following work done by the members is worth
mentioning:
• Vrajesh and Mumuksh helped formulate the entire problem statement and brief of the
problem.

• Daniel and Mumuksh helped us in understanding the entire cryptography process. This
includes topics from Diffie-Hellman process and the generation of secret keys to the entire
encryption-decryption algorithm.

• Vrajesh, Daniel, and Mumuksh contributed towards the code for text-to-text encryption,
while Jinay and Kush formulated the MATLAB code (which has not been included in this
report).

• Jinay and Kush completed the entire documentation process, including the documentation
in LaTex, writing the entire content. They also created the slides for the presentation.

9 References and Bibliography

1. Diffie-Hellman

2. Future of Encryption

3. Tech Target, Diffie-Hellman.

4. Wolfram

5. FedTechMagazine

6. Basics of Cryptography

7. Implementation of Diffie-Hellman

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8. Implementation of Diffie-Hellman

9. Jonathan Blackledge, Cryptography Using Steganography: New Algorithms and Applications

10. AESHA N. ELGHANDOUR, AHMED M. SALAH1, YASSER A. ELMASRY,ABDELRAHMAN

A. KARAWIA, An Image Encryption Algorithm Based on Bisection Method

11. Nagunwa T.;"Examining Usage of Web Browser Security Indicators in ebanking:A Case
Study"; International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer Science and Software
Engineering; Volume 4,Issue 9,September 2014.

12. Alfred J.Menezes, Paul C.Van Oorschot and Scott A.Vanstone; "Handbook of Applied
Cryptography";1996.

13. Whitfield D. and Martin E.Hellman;"New Directions in cryptograhy" ;IEEE Transactions

on Information Theory;Vol.22,No.6 November 1976.

14. Song Y.Yan; "Number Theory for Computing"; Second Edition.(2002).

15. J.Buchmann;" Introduction to cryptography"; 2nd ed.(2004)

16. Kandasamy , P. Thilagavathy, K. Gunavathy,k., Numerical Methods, S.Chand and Co.New

Delhi 2008.

17. Saxena , H.C. ,Finite Differences and Numerical Analysis,S.Chand and Co.New Delhi
2008.

18. Amartya Ghosh and Anirban Saha, NUMERICAL METHOD BASED ENCRYPTION ALGORITHM

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