What are the differences between BCrypt vs crypto? If you are unaware of the security aspects of the exchanges and systems used in crypto trading and have never heard about anything called BCrypt or native crypto module, this is the right place to be.
In this article, you will come to know about what these are, their differences, how they work, and which one you should choose.
The cryptocurrency market with a multi-billion dollar market cap uses a specific crypto algorithm to offer protection to the miners and traders. However, only a few of them, such as the SGA 256 used by Bitcoin can be optimized.
This calls for several other solutions such as SCrypt, BCrypt, Equihash, and more apart from the crypto algorithm and PBKDF or Password Based Key Derivation Function.
All these use slow functions for password hashing to protect billions of dollars in cryptocurrencies. However, it is needed to know which is more effective to use.
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5 Differences Between BCrypt vs Crypto
Today, with the advancement of technology, the attackers use more powerful and specialized hardware than you do that can be customized according to the hashing algorithm and hardware architecture of your system.
In order to fight against these attacks, slow hashing functions are used to protect the passwords. Check out DeFi vs Crypto CeFi.
Now, when you look for security, an obvious question that may arise in your mind is which among the BCrypt and built-in crypto modules is the best and safest.
Well, for that, you will first need to know the differences between the two and then research quite a bit to find the best solution.
Starting with the differences, here they are.
1. Module Design
In the BCrypt module, the BCrypt password hashing algorithm is implemented which protects the data and the system on the whole. It is quite effective and good at its job.
The password hash ensures key strengthening of the input by slowing the calculation down basically. This prevents the attackers from finding it easy to crack the password.
Instead, the attackers need to spend more time, put in more effort and use a lot of resources along with it to find the actual input by dictionary attacks or by brute force.
However, this will also slow down the legit users but that is only once for a specific password because they are more likely to use the right password before the attackers do. The attackers, on the other hand, will be slowed down for each attempt they make.
On the other hand, the crypto module built in it typically contains several cryptographic primitives. These include hashing, key exchange, asymmetric and symmetric encryption, and a lot more.
Though it does not contain BCrypt, it surely does implement PBKDF2 which is in fact password hashing but is not as good and effective as BCrypt.
2. Use
You can use BCrypt if you want to do a computationally pricey and slow hashing. BCrypt is best to use in those settings where you specifically do not want any attacker to intervene by reversing the hashes.
One such specific use is in the case of user passwords and other things related to passwords. As for other less important things, you can use the native encryption.
On the other hand, the crypto module can be used for a wide variety of tasks which includes creating crypto tokens at random or MD5/SHA1 hashes or an HMAC checksum.
It is the inclusion of the node.js in the crypto module built-in for encryption that enhances the security aspect. The node.js is an open-source cross-platform that runs on the V8 engine with a JavaScript runtime milieu running in the backend. It typically enforces JavaScript code outside the web browser.
3. Safety Aspect
People usually prefer to use BCrypt rather than crypto because it is significantly slow by its design. This means that it will take a considerable amount of time to process the set password to enter into the system and steal information from the database.
Another reason to prefer it over crypto is that it can work on any machine and at the same time it will save a lot of power of the Graphics Processing Unit. However, when it comes to the safety aspect, it is not as safe as the crypto password solution.
On the other hand, the crypto algorithm was less preferred even a few years back because it did not have this feature back then. However, with the developed version of the Node’s crypto or the node.js that comes with password derivation functions, it makes the built-in solution much safer to use.
4. The Key Setup Phase
When it comes to the setup of BCrypt and crypto, there is a significant difference in the key setup as well. As for BCrypt, it comes with quite a costly key setup phase in its Blowfish algorithm.
This algorithm usually adjusts the key setup so that it is repeated for a number of times which is usually 4,096 as of now. However, this number can be increased if the hardware is more powerful to make it more difficult for an attacker to reverse the hashing.
On the other hand, using the crypto module of passwords is also feasible these days because its key setup implements different components such as PKDF2 and SCrypt both.
Here, SCrypt is much better than PKDF2 but in combination these work quite well. It is these components that make crypto built-in a bit more efficient in the sense that the attacker will not be able to recover the password even after gaining access to your encryption and database keys.
5. Working Process
Both the crypto module built-in as well as BCrypt comes with node.js which helps in their respective working process, albeit differently. The crypto module which usually comes with the Node.js helps in its working process which involves generating characters at random to create new passwords.
This however is not possible by using the Math.random function of JavaScript. The crypto module works basically and directly on the mongoose model as well as on mongoose virtual field handling and Scrypt, which is built in it, and uses the memory of the computer.
On the other hand, the working process of BCrypt, which mainly focuses on the computational power, is facilitated further by the bcrypt-node.js library.
It helps in generating ‘salts’ or a string of characters for passwords. In addition to that, it also helps in hashing the salted passwords to ensure that it is saved to the database. BCrypt also works in controller const hash which is good for hashing passwords.
Which is Better – BCrypt or Crypto?
In this digital world when you make any transaction online it is important to make sure that it is safe.
When it comes to crypto trading, which is mainly anonymous trading and does not need a middleman or a central governing body, the safety aspect seems to be even more profound.
Therefore, you should make a prudent choice between crypto and BCrypt without being confused. However, you should follow the basic principle which remains the same as always: you will need a function that may be slow but stays unbroken and is also appraised by the crypto community.
Some users say that using the built-in crypto is better than using BCrypt since it is easier that way to deploy the apps.
However, as compared to others, BCrypt has been used since 1999 and has been doing quite a good job.
This seems to be more ASIC or GPU resistant than others such as PBKDF2 though it may not be as efficient when used in a new system as compared to older ones. This is because it has some issues in offline cracking especially in the threat model.
Cryptocurrencies rely on hashing passwords and use different solutions for it. However, BCrypt is much better than the crypto module built-in as well as other available solutions. These include:
- Plain text passwords
- One way hash passwords and
- ‘Salted’ passwords.
BCrypt, on the other hand, has all the features and functionalities that provide the best solution for apt password encryption. It is much more able to protect the resources and valuable data irrespective of what happens.
The BCrypt hashing function, which is designed by Niels Provos and David Mazières, is built on Blowfish Block Cipher Cryptomatic Algorithm. This feature allows it to take the form of a more adaptive hash function.
BCrypt is also more efficient because it uses a Key Factor that allows it to make adjustments to the cost of hashing without compromising on its efficacy and strength. When changes are made in the Key Factor, it influences the hash output.
This means that, no matter what, BCrypt will be exceptionally resistant to hacks even when there is a password cracking, usually termed as Rainbow Table.
It is this Key Factor that is the key feature of BCrypt and makes it so reliable for any average as well as the most powerful computers used for crypto mining and trading.
The most significant reason behind it is that BCrypt will compensate for the powerful computers and will reduce the speed of hashing quite significantly. This in turn will help significantly in reducing the speed of the cracking process until it is no longer a workable tactic.
Therefore, considering all the facts and factors mentioned above, BCrypt offers a much better and workable solution than the crypto module which will help you to protect all sensitive information and data and keep your system secure with appropriate password methods.
However, sometimes even BCrypt may fail to protect the stored information in the system.
This is due to the fact that BCrypt is simply a password hashing algorithm and not an encryption algorithm. Therefore, make sure that you choose only the one that will best suit your needs.
Conclusion
Since it is about security, your choice between crypto or BCrypt should not be based only on which is the best to use but also on the system used. And, knowing the differences will help in identifying the issues related to side-channel leakage.
I have special interest in crypto and intend to help common people to gain knowledge about the digital asset as well as its potential. Follow Me at Linkedin.
