excerpted from: Communications Week No. 473, September 27, 1993 page 36 Cylink Triples Encryption by Sharon Fisher Sunnyvale, Calif. - Cylink Corp. has announced an encryption product that improves security by encrypting data three times using current standards. The Cylink product uses the Data Encryption Standard, which defines a 56-bit key for scrambling messages to prevent access by unauthorized users. DES was adopted in 1977 as the U.S. federal standard for data encryption. Skirting DES Limitations Some users have expressed concern, however, that DES' 56 bits cannot prevent a determined attacker from using more powerful hardware and software to crack the code. The Cylink product addresses the problem by using DES to encrypt the data more than once, according to company officials. Cylink's Cipher/Decipher-HSi offers triple-DES, which encrypts DES data three times, and gives the 56-bit key the effect of a 112-bit key, according to the company, based here. The triple-DES approach makes the Cylink product more secure than the government's proposed Clipper system, which uses an 80-bit key, the company said. Users could get the triple-DES effect by manually encrypting data three times, but the process would take three times as long as single DES encryption, Cylink noted. Cidec-HSi uses improved circuit technology that performs the three encryptions without taking that long, the company said. Cidec-HSi works at speeds of up to 2.048 million bits per second and is available with a wide variety of interfaces, Cylink said. It also includes a public key management system, which lets users exchange keys so that they can read each other's messages. The device also offers an optional embedded channel service unit, which can be connected directly to the public T1 carrier network, the company said. Cylink said it can retrofit current Cidec-HSi systems so they can benefit from the new triple-DES technology. AT&T Compatibitlity The company said that Cidec-HSi meets compatibility standards for use with AT&T's Accunet T1.5 and Extended Superframe Format services. Cylink can be reached at 735-5800.