Understand Key Concepts in Tink
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When you start working with Tink for the first time, there are some key concepts
you should understand before you begin your journey; these are described in the
following sections.
Primitives
Tink uses primitives as cryptographic building blocks that manage an
underlying algorithm so users can perform cryptographic tasks safely. A
primitive defines the details of a cryptographic algorithm and the key type.
Primitives supported by Tink:
- Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data (AEAD): The most common
primitive for data encryption; suitable for most encryption needs. AEAD
provides plaintext confidentiality, and allows verification of its integrity
and authenticity. See Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data
(AEAD).
- Deterministic encryption: A primitive that always produces the same
ciphertext for a given plaintext and key. This can be risky, because an
attacker only needs to find out which ciphertext corresponds to a given
plaintext input to identify it. See Deterministic
AEAD.
- Digital signature: An asymmetric (see Asymmetric key encryption)
primitive for confirming the authenticity and integrity of signed data. See
Digital signature.
- Hybrid encryption: A primitive that combines asymmetric key encryption
and symmetric key encryption (see Asymmetric key encryption and Symmetric
key encryption). Hybrid encryption combines the efficiency of symmetric
encryption with the convenience of public-key encryption. To encrypt a
message, a fresh symmetric key is generated and used to encrypt the
plaintext data, while the recipient's public key is used to encrypt the
symmetric key only. The final ciphertext consists of the symmetric
ciphertext and the encrypted symmetric key. See Hybrid
encryption.
- Message Authentication Code (MAC): A symmetric (see Symmetric key
encryption) primitive for confirming the authenticity and integrity of
data. See Message Authentication Code (MAC).
- Streaming AEAD: A primitive providing authenticated encryption for
streaming data; useful when the data to be encrypted is too large to be
processed in a single step. See Streaming AEAD.
See Supported primitives by language for
compatibility information.
For more info, see primitive design.
Key types
A key type implements a specific primitive. Most primitives have several key
types to choose from depending on your requirements for security, runtime, and
space. For example, AES128_GCM is an AEAD that is fast and
effective for most needs. See more at Supported key types by
language.
Keysets & keyset handles
Tink uses keysets for managing keys. A keyset is essentially a set of keys
that facilitate key rotation. Noteworthy properties of a keyset are:
- Each key in a keyset has a unique ID, which is unique within a keyset. This
ID is usually added as a prefix to each produced ciphertext, signature or
tag to indicate which key was used (see how Tink tags
ciphertexts for more info).
- Only one key at a time in a keyset is primary. A primary key in a keyset
is the key "in use" at the moment.
- All the keys in a keyset must be implementations of the same primitive
(such as AEAD), but can have different key types (for example, an AES-GCM
and XCHACHA20-POLY1305 key).
Each Tink implementation provides APIs to create or edit keysets. However, we
recommend using Tinkey our CLI tool.
Users operate over a keyset using keyset handles. A keyset handle limits the
exposure of the actual sensitive key material. It also abstracts a keyset
allowing users to obtain a primitive that "wraps" the entire keyset. For
example, you can get an AEAD primitive of a keyset with N keys; encryption and
decryption with the obtained primitive then uses the primary key in the keyset.
For more info, see keyset design.
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Last updated 2024-11-14 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2024-11-14 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eTink utilizes primitives as fundamental cryptographic building blocks for secure data operations, covering encryption, signatures, and message authentication.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eKeysets in Tink efficiently manage multiple keys for a single purpose, enabling features like key rotation and supporting various key types within a set.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eKeyset handles provide a secure abstraction layer, allowing users to interact with keys and perform cryptographic operations without directly exposing sensitive key material.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTink offers a diverse selection of primitives and key types, accommodating varying security, performance, and storage requirements, with options like AEAD, digital signatures, and hybrid encryption.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["Tink employs cryptographic building blocks called *primitives*, which define algorithms and key types. These include AEAD, Deterministic encryption, Digital signature, Hybrid encryption, MAC, and Streaming AEAD. *Key types* implement primitives, offering choices based on security and performance. *Keysets*, a set of keys with unique IDs, manage key rotation. *Keyset handles* abstract keysets, providing access to a primitive that operates over the entire keyset, including encryption/decryption with the primary key.\n"],null,["# Understand Key Concepts in Tink\n\nWhen you start working with Tink for the first time, there are some key concepts\nyou should understand before you begin your journey; these are described in the\nfollowing sections.\n\nPrimitives\n----------\n\nTink uses *primitives* as cryptographic building blocks that manage an\nunderlying algorithm so users can perform cryptographic tasks safely. A\nprimitive defines the details of a cryptographic algorithm and the key type.\n\nPrimitives supported by Tink:\n\n- **Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data (AEAD)** : The most common primitive for data encryption; suitable for most encryption needs. AEAD provides plaintext confidentiality, and allows verification of its integrity and authenticity. See [Authenticated Encryption with Associated Data\n (AEAD)](/tink/aead).\n- **Deterministic encryption:** A primitive that always produces the same ciphertext for a given plaintext and key. This can be risky, because an attacker only needs to find out which ciphertext corresponds to a given plaintext input to identify it. See [Deterministic\n AEAD](/tink/deterministic-aead).\n- **Digital signature** : An asymmetric (see *Asymmetric key encryption* ) primitive for confirming the authenticity and integrity of signed data. See [Digital signature](/tink/digital-signature).\n- **Hybrid encryption** : A primitive that combines asymmetric key encryption and symmetric key encryption (see *Asymmetric key encryption* and *Symmetric\n key encryption* ). Hybrid encryption combines the efficiency of symmetric encryption with the convenience of public-key encryption. To encrypt a message, a fresh symmetric key is generated and used to encrypt the plaintext data, while the recipient's public key is used to encrypt the symmetric key only. The final ciphertext consists of the symmetric ciphertext and the encrypted symmetric key. See [Hybrid\n encryption](/tink/hybrid).\n- **Message Authentication Code (MAC)** : A symmetric (see *Symmetric key\n encryption* ) primitive for confirming the authenticity and integrity of data. See [Message Authentication Code (MAC)](/tink/mac).\n- **Streaming AEAD** : A primitive providing authenticated encryption for streaming data; useful when the data to be encrypted is too large to be processed in a single step. See [Streaming AEAD](/tink/streaming-aead).\n\nSee [Supported primitives by language](/tink/primitives-by-language) for\ncompatibility information.\n\nFor more info, see [primitive design](/tink/design/primitives_and_interfaces).\n\nKey types\n---------\n\nA *key type* implements a specific primitive. Most primitives have several key\ntypes to choose from depending on your requirements for security, runtime, and\nspace. For example, AES128_GCM is an [AEAD](/tink/aead) that is fast and\neffective for most needs. See more at [Supported key types by\nlanguage](/tink/supported-key-types).\n\nKeysets \\& keyset handles\n-------------------------\n\nTink uses *keysets* for managing keys. A keyset is essentially a set of keys\nthat facilitate key rotation. Noteworthy properties of a keyset are:\n\n- Each key in a keyset has a unique ID, which is unique within a keyset. This ID is usually added as a prefix to each produced ciphertext, signature or tag to indicate which key was used (see how Tink [tags\n ciphertexts](/tink/design/keysets#tagging_ciphertexts) for more info).\n- Only one key at a time in a keyset is *primary*. A primary key in a keyset is the key \"in use\" at the moment.\n- All the keys in a keyset *must* be implementations of the same primitive (such as AEAD), but can have different key types (for example, an AES-GCM and XCHACHA20-POLY1305 key).\n\nEach Tink implementation provides APIs to create or edit keysets. However, we\nrecommend using [Tinkey](/tink/tinkey-overview) our CLI tool.\n\nUsers operate over a keyset using *keyset handles* . A keyset handle limits the\nexposure of the actual sensitive key material. It also abstracts a keyset\nallowing users to obtain a primitive that \"wraps\" the entire keyset. For\nexample, you can get an AEAD primitive of a keyset with `N` keys; encryption and\ndecryption with the obtained primitive then uses the primary key in the keyset.\n\nFor more info, see [keyset design](/tink/design/keysets)."]]
