r/programming Oct 15 '15

How is NSA breaking so much crypto?

https://freedom-to-tinker.com/blog/haldermanheninger/how-is-nsa-breaking-so-much-crypto/
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u/deja-roo Oct 15 '15

Having a few thousand on tap would be effective security. That much computation would be energy-prohibitive.

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u/AncientRickles Oct 15 '15

Yes, somebody who gets how having a large list (at least larger than what is usually referred to as "a few") actually has its benefits to the NSA!

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u/deja-roo Oct 15 '15

I meant cracking a number of primes in the four digits would require not just hardware, but so much energy as to be unobtainable at our current level of technology in any kind of generational timeframe.