This really depends on what you are trying to protect. Passwords are the common data pieces that would be protected in this manner.
The easiest way to encrypt a specific row is to put the data through some sort of one way hash function before you write the data to the table. However since this is symmetric, anyone with the key can decrypt the data easily. Also, depending on the strength of the hash function, anyone with the hashed data could decrypt the data using a brute force attack. I believe that Java and C both have basic hash functions. In terms of performance, hashing is probably the most economical and widely accepted method. Use the largest key strength possible without hindering performance. This will take some trial and effort. I would be remiss if I didn't mention that this is in no way a bullet proof method of protecting data in a database. You have to first analyze the data you are protecting, and determine the cost to you if someone were to intercept the data. If the data is transmitted over the network in clear text for example, anyone with a sniffer and a laptop can intercept and change the data without you knowing about it. In that case, your hash function has little or no effect. In the case of passwords, this is a most dangerous method for password storage. You also have to consider the security of the database itself. How is it accessed? Where is it stored? If the data is widely accessible, then this is akin to closing the barn door after the horse got out. Timothy A. Sawyer, CISSP Managing Director MBD Solutions -----Original Message----- From: sqlite-users-boun...@sqlite.org [mailto:sqlite-users-boun...@sqlite.org] On Behalf Of Kavita Raghunathan Sent: Tuesday, May 04, 2010 12:19 PM To: Discussion of SQLite Database Subject: [sqlite] Encryption of sqlite DB Hi, What's the simplest way to encrypt only certain rows in an sqlite DB? If there is no way to do this (for storing passwords etc), I would like to know the best way to encrypt the whole sqlite DB. (Prefer only encrypting some rows, but if this introduces complexity, I'm willing to encrypt the whole database) kavita _______________________________________________ sqlite-users mailing list sqlite-users@sqlite.org http://sqlite.org:8080/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sqlite-users _______________________________________________ sqlite-users mailing list sqlite-users@sqlite.org http://sqlite.org:8080/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/sqlite-users
