Private key

From iA wiki

See also: Security | Cryptography | Public-Key Cryptosystem | Public key | Key Pair

Also known as: Secret Key

A key file or block of text that is important in most secure communications. In online transactions, Private Keys are generated automatically (SSL) but in PGP Private keys must be manually created, usually at install.

The private key is one of three security features of the Public-Key Cryptosystem, working with the public key and user password to create a secure channel.

Like the name, the "Private" key should be kept secret, on a separate disk if possible, to protect against Key-Logging Attack. Public keys may be shared openly.

Example

An actual Private Key block generated using GPG (using test@test.com):

-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
Version: GnuPG v1.2.1 (MingW32) - WinPT 0.7.96rc1
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=4eTn
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----

In case of interception

Your communications are not necessarily compromised - its merely an extra layer of security, even with both your Public Key and Private Key and very difficult to break your secure communications without the password.

It is recommended however that you generate a new private and public key pair and communicate with the new pair. There is no limit to the number of keys that you can create.