Spectrum Input uses SSL public-key encryption to exchange a session key between the client and server; this session key is used to encrypt the http transaction (both request and response). Each transaction uses a different session key so that even if someone did manage to decrypt a transaction, that would not mean that they would have found the server's secret key; if they wanted to decrypt another transaction, they'd need to spend as much time and effort on the second transaction as they did on the first.

Servers and browsers do encryption ranging from a 40-bit secret key to a 128-bit secret key, that is to say '2 to the 40th power' or '2 to the 128th power'. Many people have heard that 40-bit is insecure and that you need 128-bit to keep your credit card info safe. They feel that using a 40-bit key is insecure because it's vulnerable to a "brute force" attack (basically trying each of the 2^40 possible keys until you find the one that decrypts the message). This was in fact demonstrated when a French researcher used a network of fast workstations to crack a 40-bit encrypted message in a little over a week. Of course, even this 'vulnerability' is not really applicable to applications like an online credit card transaction, since the transaction is completed in a few moments. If a network of fast computers takes a week to crack a 40-bit key, you'd be completed your transaction and long gone before the hacker even got started.

Of course, using a 128-bit key eliminates any problem at all because there are 2^128 instead of 2^40 possible keys. Using the same method (a networked of fast workstations) to crack a message encrypted with such a key would take significantly longer than the age of the universe using conventional technology. Remember that 128-bit is not just 'three times' as powerful as 40-bit encryption. 2^128 is 'two times two, times two, times two...' with 128 two's. That is two, doubled on itself 128 times. 2^40 is already a HUGE number, about a trillion (that's a million, million!). Therefor 2^128 is that number (a trillion), doubled over and over on itself another 88 times. Again, it would take significantly longer than the age of the universe to crack a 128-bit key.

In Netscape versions 3.X and earlier you can tell what kind of encryption is in use for a particular document by looking at the "document" information" screen accessible from the file menu. The little key in the lower left-hand corner of the Netscape window also indicates this information. A solid key with three teeth means 128-bit encryption, a solid key with two teeth means 40-bit encryption, and a broken key means no encryption. Even if your browser supports 128-bit encryption, it may use 40-bit encryption when talking to other servers or to servers outside the U.S. and Canada. In Netscape versions 4.X and higher, click on the "Security" button to determine whether the current page is encrypted, and, if so, what level of encryption is in use.

In Microsoft Internet Explorer, a solid padlock will appear on the bottom right of the screen when encryption is in use. To determine whether 40-bit or 128-bit encryption is in effect, open the document information page using File->Properties. This will indicate whether "weak" or "strong" encryption is in use.

Depending on how your security settings are setup in your Browser, you may also see information about our Certificate when you enter the secure directories. This information will usually include the Dates that the Certificate is valid for, the site name that the Certificate has been issued to, and the Certificate Authority (or 'CA') that issued the Certificate. You can also usually view the Certificate to see information about the various parties..

The most common warning is that you have not previously chosen to Trust the authority. This is a normal warning if you haven't already purchased anything online from a Merchant who's certificate was issued by a Certificate Authority that you haven't told your browser to trust from now on. Of course, you may well have no errors, warnings or information screens at all - again, largely depending on the way you've got your security settings set in your Browser.

In any case, the encryption level and the security is the same whether you've got your settings low (don't warn me about anything) or very high (warn and inform me about everything). Either way, your data is still encrypted and still secure