Learn how encryption keeps information safe, and teach your students how it's used in the world today. Supported by Google. Discover the history of encryption and learn how it's used in the modern world. On this course, you will learn about what encryption is and understand its use in the past by using the Caesar and Vigenère ciphers.

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You will also look at the present and future of encryption and investigate both symmetric and asymmetric encryption schemes.

The course includes several practical encryption activities which you can complete and use in your own classroom.

Syllabus

Week 1: Encryption and substitution ciphers

Week 2: Modern encryption

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

- Describe the general process of encryption and decryption

- Apply a Caesar Cipher and a Vigenère Cipher

- Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different encryption algorithms

- Compare symmetric and asymmetric encryption

- Demonstrate methods of breaking simple encryption schemes

- Describe how encryption is used in the modern world, and some of the possible ethical implications of this