Encrypt

Description

Encrypts a string using a specific algorithm and encoding method.

Returns

String; can be much longer than the original string.

Category

Security functions, String functions

Function syntax

Encrypt(string, key [, algorithm, encoding, IVorSalt, iterations])

See also

Decrypt, EncryptBinary, DecryptBinary

History

ColdFusion 8: Added support for encryption using the RSA BSafe Crypto-J library on Enterprise Edition.

ColdFusion MX 7.01: Added the IVorSalt and iterations parameters.

ColdFusion MX 7: Added the algorithm and encoding parameters.

Parameters

Usage

This function uses a symmetric key-based algorithm, in which the same key is used to encrypt and decrypt a string. The security of the encrypted string depends on maintaining the secrecy of the key.

The following are the FIPS-140 approved algorithms included in the RSA BSafe Crypto-J library that are used by ColdFusion. Some of these are not used with the encrypt function, but are used with other functions:

• AES – ECB, CBC, CFB (128), OFB (128) – [128, 192, 256-bit key sizes]

• AES – CTR

• Diffie-Hellman Key Agreement

• DSA

• FIPS 186-2 General Purpose [(x-Change Notice); (SHA-1)]

• FIPS 186-2 [(x-Change Notice); (SHA-1)]

• HMAC-SHAx (where x is 1, 224, 256, 384, or 512)

• RSA PKCS#1 v1.5 (sign, verify) (SHA-1,SHA-224,SHA-256,SHA-384,SHA-512)

• Secure Hash Standard (SHA-1, SHA-224, SHA-256, SHA-384, SHA-512)

• Triple DES - ECB, CBC, CFB (64 bit), and OFB (64 bit)

All algorithms included in the RSA BSafe Crypto-J library are available for use in the Enterprise Edition. In certain cases, you may want to disable some algorithms. To disable the DESX, RC5, and MD5PRNG algorithms, specify the following in the JVM arguments on the Java and JVM page of the ColdFusion Administrator:

-Dcoldfusion.enablefipscrypto=true

FIPS-140 approved cryptography is not available if you are running ColdFusion on WebSphere of JBoss.

To use the IBM/Lotus Sametime Instant Messaging Gateway in the Enterprise edition, disable the FIPS-140-only cryptography setting by specifying the following in the JVM arguments on the Java and JVM page of the ColdFusion Administrator:

-Dcoldfusion.disablejsafe=true

In Standard Edition, for all algorithms except the default algorithm, ColdFusion uses the Java Cryptography Extension (JCE) and installs a Sun Java runtime that includes the Sun JCE default security provider. This provider includes the algorithms listed in the Parameters section. The JCE framework includes facilities for using other provider implementations; however, Adobe cannot provide technical support for third-party security providers.

The default algorithm, which is the same one used in ColdFusion 5 and ColdFusion MX, uses an XOR-based algorithm that uses a pseudo-random 32-bit key, based on a seed passed by the user as a function parameter. This algorithm is less secure than the other available algorithms.

Example

The following example encrypts and decrypts a text string. It lets you specify the encryption algorithm and encoding technique. It also has a field for a key seed to use with the CFMX_COMPAT algorithm. For all other algorithms, it generates a secret key.

<h3>Encrypt Example</h3> 
<!--- Do the following if the form has been submitted. ---> 
<cfif IsDefined("Form.myString")> 
    <cfscript> 
        /* GenerateSecretKey does not generate key for the CFMX_COMPAT algorithm, 
        so use the key from the form. 
        */ 
        if (Form.myAlgorithm EQ "CFMX_COMPAT") 
            theKey=Form.MyKey; 
        // For all other encryption techniques, generate a secret key. 
        else 
            theKey=generateSecretKey(Form.myAlgorithm); 
        //Encrypt the string 
        encrypted=encrypt(Form.myString, theKey, Form.myAlgorithm, 
            Form.myEncoding); 
        //Decrypt it 
        decrypted=decrypt(encrypted, theKey, Form.myAlgorithm, Form.myEncoding); 
    </cfscript> 
 
    <!--- Display the values used for encryption and decryption,  
            and the results. ---> 
    <cfoutput> 
        <b>The algorithm:</b> #Form.myAlgorithm#<br> 
        <b>The key:</B> #theKey#<br> 
        <br> 
        <b>The string:</b> #Form.myString# <br> 
        <br> 
        <b>Encrypted:</b> #encrypted#<br> 
        <br> 
        <b>Decrypted:</b> #decrypted#<br> 
    </cfoutput> 
</cfif> 
 
<!--- The input form.---> 
<form action="#CGI.SCRIPT_NAME#" method="post"> 
    <b>Select the encoding</b><br> 
    <select size="1" name="myEncoding"> 
        <option selected>UU</option> 
        <option>Base64</option> 
        <option>Hex</option> 
    </select><br> 
    <br> 
    <b>Select the algorithm</b><br> 
    <select size="1" name="myAlgorithm"> 
        <option selected>CFMX_COMPAT</option> 
        <option>AES</option> 
        <option>DES</option> 
        <option>DESEDE</option> 
    </select><br> 
    <br> 
    <b>Input your key</b> (used for CFMX_COMPAT encryption only)<br> 
    <input type = "Text" name = "myKey" value = "MyKey"><br> 
    <br> 
    <b>Enter string to encrypt</b><br> 
    <textArea name = "myString" cols = "40" rows = "5" WRAP = "VIRTUAL">This string will be encrypted (you can replace it with more typing). 
    </textArea><br> 
    <input type = "Submit" value = "Encrypt my String"> 
</form>