Summary of the Six Steps

For some algorithms, such as generating a public/private key pair, there is no Update step.

Step 5: Final

Finalize the action initiated in Step 4. Again, the finalization depends on the algorithm; for some algorithms, Final is replaced by Generate. For example:

For an encryption or decryption algorithm, the Final step encrypts or decrypts the final portion of the data. For some algorithms, this data may need special handling, such as padding, that is different from the Update step.

For a message digest, the digest action takes place during Final.

For a random number generator, the Final (or Generate) step generates the random bytes.

For generating a public/private key pair, the key pair generation takes place in the Generate step.

Step 6: Destroy

Free any memory allocated in the previous steps and overwrite any sensitive memory with zeroes. The Destroy step is crucial to the security of an application.

C h a p t e r 2 Q u i c k S t a r t

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RSA Security 5.2.2 manual Final