Encryption at RIT

ISO-approved encryption is divided into two categories: Preferred and Acceptable. Preferred encryption methods were chosen based on standard industry usage and their ability to support RIT business processes.

Preferred Encryption (revised table)

Purpose	Encryption Algorithms	RIT Security Standard	Comments
Network Connections (including web browsers)	TLS version 1.3 is recommended, although TLS 1.2 is acceptable.	Web, Network	For quantum-resistant protection, a hybrid key exchange (e.g., X25519 combined with ML-KEM) on TLS 1.3 is recommended. SSL and TLS 1.0/1.1 are no longer secure.
Laptop/Desktop Encryption	AES 256-bit is recommended, although AES 128-bit or higher is acceptable.	Desktop and Portable Computer	Centrally-managed whole disk encryption is required to meet the 2015 Desktop and Portable Computer standard. 3DES is no longer considered secure. AES is considered quantum-resistant at 256-bit key length.
Server	AES is recommended at 256-bit, although AES 128-bit or higher is acceptable.	Server	RC4 is no longer supported.
Portable Media	AES 256-bit is recommended, although AES 128-bit and Twofish are acceptable.	Portable Media	3DES and Truecrypt are no longer considered secure.
Public/Private Key Encryption and Key Exchange	Diffie-Hellman 3,072-bit and RSA 3072-bit are recommended, although PGP 2048-bit or greater is acceptable.		For quantum-resistant key exchange, ML-KEM (FIPS 203, formerly known as CRYSTALS-Kyber) is recommended. RSA 2048-bit is adequate, although not recommended.
Digital Signatures	RSA 3072-bit or greater is recommended for classical signing.		For quantum-resistant digital signatures, ML-DSA (FIPS 204, formerly known as CRYSTALS-Dilithium) is recommended. SLH-DSA (FIPS 205, formerly known as SPHINCS+) is an acceptable backup algorithm, based on a different mathematical approach for defense-in-depth.
Cryptographic Hashes/Checksums	SHA-2 or greater and the Tiger hash are all adequate for hash comparison.		SHA-1, RIPEMD 128 and RIPEMD 160 are considered strong algorithms, but there is reason to suspect that they may be susceptible to frequency collisions (hash duplications) and their use is not recommended in situations where collision resistance is required. In such cases, SHA-2 is acceptable. MD5 is no longer considered secure.

Acceptable Encryption

Use of non-preferred encryption methods is discouraged. However, we recognize that there may be times when business or other requirements may be better served with an alternative algorithm. In those cases, developers should reference the EDUCASE Encryption Strength Support Matrix. Algorithms with a strength rating of High are acceptable for use at RIT. Use of algorithms with a strength rating of Low or Medium are not permitted.

Encryption Strength

Encryption strength is a relative concept. Both the algorithm used and the length of the key used to encrypt data determines the strength of encryption. Encryption services also perform various cryptographic functions beyond data encryption.

Key Management Requirements

Security of the key management process for encryption keys is especially important. Security of encrypted content (ciphertext) may be compared to a physical lock and key. The algorithm provides the lock. The encryption key unlocks the ciphertext. If the key is weak or compromised, the encryption can be broken. Key revocation provides a means to disallow or change a compromised key and "re-key" the lock.

Many encryption algorithms have the potential to lock access to data permanently if the key is lost. Key escrow provides a "copy" of the key to enable access to the data.

Centralized encryption/key management ensures that data will remain both encrypted and accessible. Non centralized or individual encryption without key escrow may disallow access to the encrypted RIT information if the key is lost. Use of non-centralized or individual encryption of RIT information assets would be allowed only through a granted exception and would require an ISO-reviewed key escrow and revocation process.