Creates user-specified passwords on keys. All the information related to keys and encryption is encapsulated by create encryption key, which allows you to specify the encryption algorithm and key size, the key’s default property, an optional user-specified password to encrypt the key, as well as the use of an initialization vector or padding during the encryption process.
Adaptive Server uses Security Builder Crypto™ for key generation and encryption.
create encryption key [database.[owner.] keyname [as default]
[ for algorithm_name ]
[ with { [ keylength num_bits ]
[ passwd 'password_phrase' ]
[ init_vector {NULL | random } ]
[ pad {NULL | random } ] } ]
must be unique in the user’s table, view, and procedure name space in the current database. Specify the database name if the key is in another database; specify the owner name if this key name is not unique in the database. The default value for owner is the current user, and the default value for database is the current database. Only the system security officer can create keys for other users.
You cannot create temprorary keys with names starting with “#” as the first character.
allows the system security officer or the key custodian to create a database default key for encryption. The existence of an encryption key on a database default column enables the table creator to specify encryption without using a keyname on create table, alter table and select into. Adaptive Server uses the default key from the same database. The default key may be changed. See alter encryption key.
specifies the algorithm you are using. Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) is the only algorithm supported. AES supports key sizes of 128 bits, 192 bits, and 256 bits and a block size of 16 bytes.
the size, in bits, of the key to be created. For AES, valid key lengths are 128, 192, and 256 bits. The default keylength is 128 bits.
is a quoted alphanumeric string of up to 255 bytes in length that Adaptive Server uses to generate the key used to encrypt the column encryption key (the key encryption key).
specifies use of an initialization vector during encryption. When an initialization vector is used by the encryption algorithm, the ciphertext of two identical pieces of plaintext are different, which prevents a cryptanalyst from detecting patterns of data. Use of an initialization vector can add to the security of your data.
An initialization vector has some performance implications. Index creation, and optimized joins and searches, can be performed only on a column whose encryption key does not specify an initialization vector.
The default is to use an initialization vector, that is, init_vector random. Use of an initialization vector implies using a cipher block chaining (CBC) mode of encryption; setting init_vector null implies the electronic code book (ECB) mode.
omits the use of an initialization vector when encrypting. This makes the column suitable for supporting an index.
is the default. It omits random padding of data. You cannot use padding if the column must support an index.
data is automatically padded with random bytes before encryption. You can use padding instead of an initialization vector to randomize the ciphertext. Padding is suitable only for columns whose plaintext length is less than half the block length. For the AES algorithm the block length is 16 bytes.
Specifies a 256-bit key called “safe_key” as the database default key. The system security officer enters:
create encryption key safe_key as default for AES with keylength 256
Creates a 128-bit key called “salary_key” for encrypting columns using random padding:
create encryption key salary_key for AES with init_vector null pad random
Creates a 192-bit key named “mykey” for encrypting columns using an initialization vector:
create encryption key mykey for AES with keylength 192 init_vector random
Shows how to use passwords on keys, and the key custodian’s function in setting up encryption. This example creates a key protected by a user-specified password:
create encryption key key1 with passwd 'Worlds1Biggest6Secret'
You must enter user-specified passwords that protect keys before accessing a column encrypted by the key. For more information about set encryption passwd, see Reference Manual: Commands.
Adaptive Server does not save the user-specified password. It saves a string of validating bytes known as the “salt” in sysencryptkeys.eksalt, which allows Adaptive Server to recognize whether a password used on a subsequent encryption or decryption operation is legitimate for a key. You must supply the password to Adaptive Server before you can access any column encrypted by keyname.
The system security officer and the key custodian have implicit permission to create encryption keys. The system security officer may grant that permission to other users.
Default keys can be created by the system security officer and the key custodian only.
Commands alter encryption key, drop encryption key, grant, revoke
Documentation For information about auditing, see Chapter 6, “Auditing Encrypted Columns,” in the User Guide for Encrypted Columns.
