Exam-style question
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Why is a Caesar cipher easily cracked?.
- A.It uses a key that can never be changed
- B.There are only a small number of possible shifts to try
- C.The ciphertext is always longer than the plaintext
- D.It requires a different key for every character
Model answer
What a good answer should say
- There are only a small number of possible shifts to try
Explanation
Why this works
A Caesar cipher has a small key space because the possible shifts are limited. An attacker can try the possible shifts until meaningful plaintext is found.
Common mistake
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