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Easy Encryption In Java and Python With Keyczar
rsk writes "Keyczar is an encryption toolkit born out of the Google Security Team and released under the Apache 2 license. Keyczar's purpose is to make managing encryption of secured data much easier than it has been, with the following features: a simple API; key rotation and versioning; safe default algorithms, modes, and key lengths; automated generation of initialization vectors and ciphertext signatures; Java and Python implementations (C++ coming soon); and international support in Java (Python coming soon). The example on the website is only 2 lines long, and a more fully worked out example is also provided for folks wanting to get started 'for reals.'"
I think this is similar to the programming books that say, "Look how easy it is to create a real C program! Just one line of code!" Yeah, it technically compiles and runs, but it doesn't do much of anything. This is a fairly common problem with crypto libraries in my experience: making things seem simpler than they should be in return for the "wow factor" of two-line examples, like the one provided.
This library seems to be making a big deal about "secure defaults", but I think trying to provide defaults of any kind is a really bad idea. Cryptography is something that should be thought out on a case-by-case basis. Providing defaults of any kind can lead to misuse of otherwise safe algorithms. The safest gun is still dangerous in the hands of an inexperienced person.
-William Brendel
Well said. I'm doing a little series of talks on crypto later this year and one of the hardest things to do in it is to convince people that good ciphers do not make secure cryptosystems. It becomes doubly hard when somebody slaps Google's name all over a new codebase and proclaims that you, too, can have security with nary a troublesome thought.