Which of the following statements BEST describes the Public Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS)?
A.
A set of public-key cryptography standards that support only standard algorithms such as DiffieHellman and RSA
B.
A set of public-key cryptography standards that support only algorithm-independent
implementations
C.
A set of public-key cryptography standards that support algorithms such as Diffie-Hellman and
RSA as well as algorithm independent standards
D.
A set of public-key cryptography standards that support encryption algorithms such as DiffieHellman and RSA, but does not address digital signatures
Explanation:
PKCS supports algorithm-independent and algorithm-specific implementations as well as digital
signatures and certificates. It was developed by a consortium including RSA Laboratories, Apple,
DEC, Lotus, Sun, Microsoft and MIT. At this writing, there are 15 PKCS standards. Examples of these
standards are: PKCS #1. Defines mechanisms for encrypting and signing data using the RSA publickey system PKCS #3. Defines the Diffie-Hellman key agreement protocol PKCS #10. Describes a
syntax for certification requests PKCS #15. Defines a standard format for cryptographic credentials
stored on cryptographic tokens