Let’s make it interesting.

Okay so for a minute think you’re an agent for intelligence agencies like IB/RAW. You have some top secret information about a new weapon system of another country which would wreck havoc in the world. You have to transfer the information obtained by espionage back to Delhi without getting caught, but the bummer is that you know someone named Eve is spying on you and would intercept any message you send.

How would you store and subsequently transfer the data?

This is where cryptography comes in.

When you apply the cryptographic algorithm (i.e use cryptography), your message changes, successfully hiding it for the time being. Hence the word crypto.

The message is said to be encrypted, which can be decrypted using algorithms, keys or passwords, depending upon the type of cryptographic method you use.

Now your espionage report doesn’t make any sense to Eve.

Your mission is successful. Congratulations!

Cryptography is important as it allows us to transfer data on an insecure, unencrypted, prone to eavesdropping environment. It’s like taking a bag of money in an area of criminals.

Cryptography is used in everyday life. It’s used in banking, CBSE board exams, confidential databases (like SSN, Aadhaar), sign-in on websites, and many more. It’s used even while you’re just browsing the internet, which is an extremely important application.

Cryptography is just lock and key.