On Sun, 21 Jul 1996, Erle Greer wrote: [snip]
I have a 2048-bit PgP key and pseudorandom a/n character generator, from which I chose a large passphrase similar to:
f4VnI1G1mGcwTZ1vGoyPwN4NLojF8Ee9ff1aicOGn87x0nwwHhJUo6XSYKEawRne (Yes, cut-n-paste, but my only in-house threat is my wife.)
Ugh. Erle, you might want to check out the Diceware method for generating passphrases. It lets you generate a lengthy passphrase that is random and that you might actually be able to remember :) I don't have a URL handy, but if you go to Altavista and search for "diceware" you should find it... It might be indexed at Yahoo, too...
Actual Question: Does the length and randomness of a passphrase contribute at all to the overall security of a cryptosystem?
Actual short answer: yes :) Look for the passphrase FAQ, for a better explanation than I can give... ______________________________________________________________________ Rich Burroughs richieb@teleport.com http://www.teleport.com/~richieb See my Blue Ribbon Page at http://www.teleport.com/~richieb/blueribbon New EF zine "cause for alarm" - http://www.teleport.com/~richieb/cause