Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10(3S) 1648-1656 2023

Hybrid Cryptographic Algorithm Using Multiprocessing for File

Storage on the Cloud
A.Vijayalakshmi
Vardhaman College of Engineering Hyderabad, India, [email protected]

N. Varun Reddy
Vardhaman College of Engineering Hyderabad, India, [email protected]

S. Meghamsh
Vardhaman College of Engineering Hyderabad, India, [email protected]

G. Abhishek
Vardhaman College of Engineering Hyderabad, India, [email protected]

Abstract
Every aspect of our modern life is interconnected to the internet leading to the creation of massive volumes
of data that we cannot store on our smartphones or other storage devices owing to their size. An effective
way to store enormous amounts of is using cloud storage technology, usage of these services has been rising
quickly lately. Many businesses are switching from conventional storage techniques to cloud storage as it
makes it simple to access information for users whenever and anywhere needed. Different cryptographic
methods are used to safeguard the data. This paper proposes a hybrid cryptographic algorithm that utilizes
the AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) algorithm and the Blowfish algorithm. Our proposed
cryptographic algorithm has higher speeds for executing encryption and decryption processes. This rate
increase is achieved by implementing multiprocessing in their execution. Results demonstrate that our
hybrid approach has faster execution times and greater throughput.

Keywords: Hybrid cryptography, AES, Blowfish, Throughput.

I. INTRODUCTION data typically contain sensitive information that
is kept in the cloud. Still, the user is unsure
The steady increase in demand has made cloud
about the security offered by the service
computing a hot topic in recent years. Moving
providers. Many resources in the cloud, such as
toward cloud-based data storage solutions has
networks, operating systems, databases, and
several benefits for businesses. These include
memory management, are vulnerable to various
remote access from practically anywhere
assaults. As a result, security and privacy are
globally with a reliable Internet connection,
critical in cloud applications[2]. Reasonable
simpler IT infrastructure, and
methods must be followed to transform data
administration.[1]The cloud offers many
into string words people cannot understand to
services, such as infrastructure, platforms, and
preserve the stored information. Cryptography
software, but the most significant issue is
refers to the techniques used to do this in the
ensuring security for massive data on the cloud.
computer world. Cryptography is converting an
In general, medical, military, and government
original communication into an unread

1648
 Hybrid Cryptographic Algorithm Using Multiprocessing for File Storage on the Cloud

message that an individual cannot comprehend. ciphertext by randomly choosing a key. The
In general, cryptography is challenging.[3] following ciphertext eventually becomes a key
Using only one algorithm is ineffective for the for Polybius square cipher, and the final
high-level security required for cloud ciphertext is generated by applying the key to
computing data. Because the user's application plaintext. To retrieve the message back, entire
and program are hosted by the provider, process is done in reverse order. This [10] study
concerns regarding file security are raised. This will demonstrate the implementation of cloud
problem may be resolved by the cloud provider storage security by implementing a hybrid
by encrypting the data using an encryption encryption method and hash functions. It
technique. To effectively address the basic implements two algorithms (AES) with a
issue of security in the local system secure hashing technique.
environment, a file security model is
In [11] they presented a hybrid method that
needed.[4]The phrase "hybrid cryptography"
combines RSA and Diffie-Hellman, The
refers to combining two or more cryptographic
Diffie-Hellman keys are used before and after
techniques. by combining the two separate
transmitting to change and recover the original
algorithms' speed and strength to increase the
encryption text. The Diffie-Hellman keys are
encryption's capability. This technique is used
the original encryption text.
to ensure the security of file storage systems.[5]
In [12] AES, RC6, Blowfish, and BRA
II. RELATED WORK
algorithms provide block-wise security, and all
This section addresses some of the current these require a single key of the same size for
approaches to hybrid cryptographic algorithms. file encoding and decoding. LSB
In [6] Files on the device will be encrypted steganography is used to conceal crucial
using the password-based AES technique in information in the process. [13] The
this article. The user may also download and fundamental goal of this provided work is to
view any encrypted files submitted to the separate the file into four different sections and
system. AES is used for encryption as it is not store the individual parts on other cloud
susceptible to attacks except Brute Force servers. The optimization of computing
attacks. However, even a supercomputer resources, such as execution time and solution
cannot perform a Brute Force assault. AES is optimization, leads to the modification of
also far quicker. As a result, it is an excellent encryption algorithms utilizing a hybrid
solution for cloud data protection. approach.
In[7] a survey to analyze multilevel encryption III. PROPOSED METHOD
used in the cloud, various ciphers are carefully
Initially, input data is divided into two equal
investigated and concluded that multilayer
parts; after the plaintext is broken down into
encryption enhances security compared to
two equal parts, two different encryption
single encryption algorithms. In[8] different
algorithms are applied to each. Here, the
hybrid cryptographic algorithms, various
multiprocessing approach enables independent
models' implementations, and designs are
parallel operation of this encryption or
discussed to enhance efficiency. In [9] both
decryption process. Due to the use of
Vigenère and Polybius square ciphers are used;
multiprocessing, the process of encryption or
initially, the Vigenère cipher creates a
decryption is completed relatively faster.

1649
Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10(3S) 1648-1656 2023

Figure1 Block diagram of the proposed device. The file's contents are read, and the user
model is asked to enter the key used during the
encryption process. Once the key is entered, it
is verified. An error is thrown if the entered key
does not match the key used in the encryption
process. The encrypted data is then broken
down into two parts and decrypted using AES
and Blowfish ciphers in parallel, utilizing the
multiprocessing feature of Python. After
completing both processes, the outputs are
combined using string concatenation methods.
The final result is inserted into a newly created
file, whose content is the same as the original
plaintext input.
Multiprocessing:
Multiprocessing is a built-in python package
In this work, both encryption and decryption that allows for multiple processes to run
processes have different flows of execution, but simultaneously, with each process executing
most of the processes in their execution are independently. Multiprocessing divides
similar to each other programs into smaller chunks of code that
operate independently of one another,
Encryption: increasing the system's performance[14]
The encryption process begins with a plain text [15]The primary benefit of multiprocessing is
file as input, which the program reads using that it provides an option for parallel
file-handling methods in Python. The contents processing, which can decrease the execution
are stored and split into two equal parts using times of a program.
slicing operations. The user is prompted to This study uses two algorithms: the Advanced
enter a key, which is essential for the encryption algorithm and the blowfish
encryption algorithms. AES encryption is algorithm. Each of these algorithms is briefly
applied to the first half of the data, and explained here.
Blowfish encryption is used to the second half.
Due to the independence of the two halves, AES (Advanced Encryption Algorithm):
multiprocessing is used to execute each part's The Rijndael algorithm, famous as the AES
encryption concurrently. The outputs are then algorithm, is symmetric encryption, suggesting
merged using string concatenation techniques that the same key is used in encryption and
to produce the ciphertext. The ciphertext is decryption. This is a block cipher, meaning
saved into a new file and then uploaded to the input is accepted in blocks, and any actions
selected cloud provider. conducted are performed on these blocks. AES
Decryption: uses a fixed block size of 128 bits and supports
key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits[16]. The
The decryption begins by taking an encrypted
file input from a cloud provider or the local

1650
 Hybrid Cryptographic Algorithm Using Multiprocessing for File Storage on the Cloud

schematic of the AES structure is shown in 2. Shift rows :

figure 2.
The matrix's four rows are rotated to the left and
It is based on a series of operations such as results in16-byte matrix.
substitution and permutation (permutation here
3. Mix columns:
means exchanging bits around). Although size
is calculated in bits, all actions performed on This is a straightforward replacement
them are done in bytes. Input essential length procedure. Each matrix column is modified
can be 128,192,256 bits, which determines the using matrix multiplication. Following this
number of rounds it goes through [17]. In the operation, the output will be a matrix
process of encryption, 128-bit plain text containing sixteen additional bytes.
undergoes four transformations in each round.
In figure 3 the first round process is depicted. 4. Add round key:
Those transformations are: Int this stage xor is performed between output
1. Byte substitution: of previous stage with corresponding key .Each
round repeats these four steps a total of 10, 12,
The data block in the AES algorithm is 128 bits or 14 times, depending on the key size, which
long, which implies that each data block may be 128, 192, or 256 bits. All rounds
comprises 16 bytes. In sub-byte transformation, mentioned above are performed except in the
each 8-bit in a data block is converted into a final round. The Mix Columns step is omitted.
different block using an 8-bit (Byte)
substitution box called the Rijndael S-box. The decryption process of AES is similar to
encryption but should be done in reverse order.
Figure 2 shows the implementation of the
AES algorithm AES is the most secure and scalable encryption
method for protecting sensitive data[18]. It is
widely adopted by many governments,
financial institutions, and other organizations to
protect sensitive information.
Figure 3 depicts the first round process

1651
Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10(3S) 1648-1656 2023

Blowfish Algorithm: Figure 4 shows the working of the Blowfish

algorithm
Blowfish is a symmetric block encryption [19]
cipher with a variable length key that ranges
from 32 bits to 448 bits. It encrypts blocks of
64-bit data at a time. It is based on the [20]
Feistel network, and its operation is separated
into two stages.
Those stages are:
1. key expansion
The key expansion stage converts the input key
into several sub-key arrays. subkeys are named
k1, k2, and Kn; where n lies between 1 and 14.
A P-array is also initialized with each element
of the array being 32-bit in size, digits of pi are
put into these P-array. Once the p-array
elements are assigned, they are xor-ed with The Transformation function [23] shown in
individual subkeys, and finally modified P- figure 5 takes 32-bit input and gives a 32-bit
array is formed having elements from P1, output by applying bit output by using addition,
P2,…,and P18. XOR with S-boxes in them.
Four various s-boxes[21] are also created, each Figure 5 shows the implementation of the
having 256 entries of 32 bits, and these Transformation function(F)
initialized s-boxes are used during encryption
and decryption.
2. Data encryption or decryption
Input plain text of 64 bits is broken down into
two 32-bit parts, To create the value P', [22]the
"left" 32 bits of the message are XORed with
the first element of a P-array. The right 32 bits
of the message are then put via a transformation
function called F to create a new value, F'. The
"left" half of the message is replaced by F', and
the "right" half is replaced by P', 15 times with The decryption process is alike to encryption,
following members of the P-array. To create during decryption keys are applied in reverse
the 64-bit ciphertext, the resulting P' and F' are order[24]. The Blowfish algorithm is a
then XORed with the last two elements of the symmetric encryption algorithm that is
P-array. Figure 4 shows a visual depiction of considered one of the most robust defenses
the blowfish algorithm. against hackers trying to penetrate the security
of software developed.

1652
 Hybrid Cryptographic Algorithm Using Multiprocessing for File Storage on the Cloud

IV. IMPLEMENTATION The execution time-file size graph illustrates it

with various input file sizes on the x-axis and
Visual studio code 1.74.3 was used for analysis
their respective execution time of the
on a laptop having Intel(R)Core (TM), i5-
encryption process on the y-axis. Figure 6
10210,8 GB RAM, Windows 11, 64-bit
confirms that the execution time of the
operating systems. visual studio code is a
proposed method for all given file sizes is less
lightweight but powerful source code editor
execution time for both AES and Blowfish
that runs on desktops and is available for
algorithms.
Windows, macOS, and Linux. We used Azure
as the cloud platform for project Figure 7 shows execution time of various
implementation. Various text file inputs of algorithms' decryption for various file sizes.
varying sizes, 5 MB,10 MB,15 MB, and 20
MB, are given as inputs, and execution times
for all algorithms for various file sizes are
calculated.
V. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS AND
ANALYSIS
The performance of AES and Blowfish
algorithms are compared with the proposed
algorithm using their execution times and their
respective throughput values. Execution times
and throughput values are calculated and
The execution time-file size graph illustrates it
graphically represented in Figures 6, 7, and
with various input file sizes on the x-axis and
figure8 below.
their respective execution time of the
Execution time: decryption process on the y-axis. Figure 7
illustrates that for all given file sizes, the
Figure 6 shows execution time of the proposed method has less execution time for
encryption process of various algorithms for both AES and Blowfish algorithms, making it
given file sizes. an ideal choice for any practical application.
Throughput:
Here, the throughput of a cryptographic
algorithm is calculated by taking the ratio of the
size of plain text to be encrypted in megabytes
(MB) to the encryption time taken for a given
plain text.
Tp(MegaByte)
Throughput =
Et(seconds)

Tp= Total amount of plain text to be encrypted.

Et= Total execution time of encryption process.

1653
Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10(3S) 1648-1656 2023

Figure 8 shows the throughput values of algorithm can be widely used among various
various algorithms. applications.
VI. CONCLUSION
Because cloud storage is among the most
extensively utilized products in practically
every industry, its security is one of the
significant customer concerns. It is inferred
through opposing experiments that the hybrid
encryption algorithm enhances the efficiency
of encryption, decryption, and achieves a
higher throughput. AES is the most secure
The throughput graph illustrates algorithms algorithm with no known exploit. Still,
used on the x-axis and their respective blowfish has an exploit known as a dictionary
throughputs on the y-axis. Throughput attack (all the words in the dictionary are given
indicates the speed of encryption and helps as passwords), a type of brute force attack. Still,
determine power consumption A cipher with usage of a combination of both AES and
higher throughput consumes less power [25] Blowfish keeps it safe from any form of brute
and vice versa . force attack as AES resists any form of brute
force attack. Aside from ensuring secrecy and
Figure 8 shows the supremacy of the hybrid
usability, hybrid cryptosystems give a high
algorithm when compared to AES and
level of security as the data is stored in the
Blowfish. The proposed algorithm has a
cloud as ciphertext rather than its original form.
throughput of 128 MB/S compared to 62 MB/S
The hybrid method put forward in this study
of AES and 49 MB/S of the Blowfish
has applications in device architecture,
algorithm.
software application, and other areas.
Table1 shows algorithms and their
Reference
respective values
[1] H. Tabrizchi and M. Kuchaki Rafsanjani,
ALGORITHM THROUGHPUT “A survey on security challenges in cloud
AES 62 computing: issues, threats, and solutions,”
Journal of Supercomputing, vol. 76, no.
BLOWFISH 49 12, pp. 9493–9532, Dec. 2020, doi:
HYBRID 128
10.1007/s11227-020-03213-1.
[2] I. A. T. Hashem, I. Yaqoob, N. B. Anuar,
Table 1 shows that the throughput of the hybrid
S. Mokhtar, A. Gani, and S. Ullah Khan,
algorithm is calculated as 128 MB/S which is “The rise of ‘big data’ on cloud computing:
51.5 % higher than the throughput of AES and Review and open research issues,”
61.71% higher than the Blowfish algorithm. As Information Systems, vol. 47. Elsevier Ltd,
discussed above higher throughput value pp. 98–115, 2015. doi:
means low power consumption of the 10.1016/j.is.2014.07.006.
algorithm; therefore, due to better performance
[3] A. D. Achmad, A. A. Dewi, M. R.
and high throughput value proposed hybrid
Purwanto, P. T. Nguyen, and I. Sujono,

1654
 Hybrid Cryptographic Algorithm Using Multiprocessing for File Storage on the Cloud

“Implementation of vigenere cipher as Kolkata Section, IEEE Industry

cryptographic algorithm in securing text Applications Society, and Institute of
data transmission,” Journal of Critical Electrical and Electronics Engineers,
Reviews, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 76–79, 2020, International Conference on
doi: 10.22159/jcr.07.01.15. Computational Performance Evaluation:
ComPE 2020 online conference: 2nd-4th
[4] S. Gokulraj, P. Ananthi, R. Baby, and E. July 2020.
Janani, “SECURE FILE STORAGE
USING HYBRID CRYPTOGRAPHY.” [10] N. M. Abdelnapi, F. A. Omara, and N. F.
[Online]. Available: Omran, “A Hybrid Hashing Security
https://ssrn.com/abstract=3802668 Algorithm for Data Storage on Cloud
Computing.” [Online]. Available:
[5] A. K. Bermani, T. A. K. Murshedi, and Z. https://sites.google.com/site/ijcsis/
A. Abod, “A hybrid cryptography
technique for data storage on cloud [11] S. Kalyan Ghosh, S. Rana, A. Pansari, J.
computing,” Journal of Discrete Hazra, and S. Biswas, “Hybrid
Mathematical Sciences and Cryptography, Cryptography Algorithm For Secure And
vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 1613–1624, 2021, doi: Low Cost Communication,” 2020.
10.1080/09720529.2020.1859799.
[12] S. P. and N. 2016 C. IEEE International
[6] D. Mukhopadhyay, P. S. Gupta, G. Conference on Wireless Communications,
Sonawane, S. Gupta, S. Bhavsar, and V. Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Mittal, “Enhanced Security for Cloud Engineers, S. P. and N. 2016. 03. 23-25 C.
Storage using File Encryption Spam 2.0 IEEE International Conference on
View project Cellular Automata usage in Wireless Communications, WiSPNET
Designing Search Engine View project 2016.03.23-25 Chennai, and IEEE
Enhanced Security for Cloud Storage WiSPNET 2016.03.23-25 Chennai,
using File Encryption,” 2014. [Online]. Proceedings of the 2016 IEEE
Available: International Conference on Wireless
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/ Communications, Signal Processing and
258818843 Networking (WiSPNET) 23-25 March
2016, Chennai, India.
[7] V. Ghorpade and V. Dalimbkar, “A Survey
Paper on Data security in Cloud [13] R. Parab, A. Paul, U. Mojumdar, and R.
Computing,” International Journal of Patil, “SECURED CLOUD STORAGE
Computer Sciences and Engineering USING HYBRID CRYPTOGRAPHY,”
International Journal of Computer 1330. [Online]. Available:
Sciences and Engineering, 2016, [Online]. www.irjmets.com
Available: www.ijcseonline.org
[14] Z. A. Aziz, D. Naseradeen Abdulqader, A.
[8] M. K. Sinchana and R. M. Savithramma, B. Sallow, and H. Khalid Omer, “Python
“Survey on Cloud Computing Security,” in Parallel Processing and Multiprocessing:
Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, A Rivew,” Academic Journal of Nawroz
vol. 103, Springer, 2020, pp. 1–6. doi: University, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 345–354,
10.1007/978-981-15-2043-3_1. Aug. 2021, doi:
10.25007/ajnu.v10n3a1145.
[9] North Eastern Hill University. Department
of Biomedical Engineering, Institute of [15] M. Arif Sazali, M. Syahir Sarkawi, and N.
Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Syazwani Mohd Ali, “Multiprocessing

1655
Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10(3S) 1648-1656 2023

implementation for MCNP using Python,” pp. 248–255, 2016, doi:

IOP Conf Ser Mater Sci Eng, vol. 1231, no. 10.1016/j.protcy.2016.08.104.
1, p. 012003, Feb. 2022, doi:
10.1088/1757-899x/1231/1/012003. [23] M. Nehakhatri -Valmik and V. K.
Kshirsagar, “Blowfish Algorithm.”
[16] A. Muhammad Abdullah and A. Muhamad [Online]. Available: www.iosrjournals.org
Abdullah, “Advanced Encryption Standard
(AES) Algorithm to Encrypt and Decrypt [24] K. Reddy, U. Thirupalu, R. Scholar, and E.
Data Call for papers View project K. Reddy, “Performance Analysis of
Application of Petri Nets in Computer Cryptographic Algorithms in the
Networks View project Advanced Information Security; Performance
Encryption Standard (AES) Algorithm to Analysis of Cryptographic Algorithms in
Encrypt and Decrypt Data,” 2017. the Information Security”, doi:
[Online]. Available: 10.13140/RG.2.2.16273.51047.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/ [25] M. G. Rashed, M. A. F. M. R. Hasan, R.
317615794 Islam, M. Golam Rashed, and R. Yasmin,
[17] TamilselviS, “Data Storage Security in “A Comparative Analysis of Various
Cloud Computing Using AES.” Cryptographic Algorithms Ensuring
Secrecy and Authenticity of Exchanged
[18] R. Mote, A. Pawar, and A. Dani, “Review Information,” 2021. [Online]. Available:
of security and privacy techniques in cloud https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
computing environment,” in Smart 349711184
Innovation, Systems and Technologies,
2016, vol. 50, pp. 543–551. doi:
10.1007/978-3-319-30933-0_54.
[19] A. Narang et al., “Blowfish-Symmetric
Key Cryptography Algorithms Article in,”
2015. [Online]. Available:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
317719444
[20] V. Parihar and M. A. Kulshrestha,
“BLOWFISH ALGORITHM: A
DETAILED STUDY,” 2016. [Online].
Available: www.ijtre.com
[21] A. Malhotra, A. Arora, and Dr. M. K.
Bhatia, “Symmetric Cryptographic
Approaches,” Int J Res Appl Sci Eng
Technol, vol. 10, no. 12, pp. 718–721, Dec.
2022, doi: 10.22214/ijraset.2022.47982.
[22] M. Suresh and M. Neema, “Hardware
Implementation of Blowfish Algorithm for
the Secure Data Transmission in Internet
of Things,” Procedia Technology, vol. 25,

1656