e that could recover a DES key in a second (i.e., try 255 keys per second), then it would take that machine approximately 149 trillion years to crack a 128-bit AES key. To put that into perspective, the universe is believed to be less than 20 billion years old.
Note that these efforts are per key; if you were to divide the data you were encrypting into 10 subsections and used a different key for each of the subsections, this decryption process would need to be repeated 10 times.
To summarize, brute force cracking can be significantly slowed with strong encryption, (essentially, just using longer keys) and slower algorithms. Modern strong encryption should be able to hold off all but the best-funded efforts by crackers with lots and lots of time on their hands. Encryption can make data access difficult enough that a malicious cracker may decide to look for an easier target rather than spending resources attempting to crack strong encryption.
The complexity of these algorithms prevents us from describing their workings in-depth in a guide intended for readers with limited technical knowledge of encryption, but here are some links and names that may be useful if you want to know more about the technical aspects of encryption software. You can always find more information on each algorithm (including ones that are not listed here) simply by searching for the algorithm's name on your favorite Internet search engine.
One interesting read is the PGP Diffie-Hellman vs. RSA FAQ, which discusses the effectiveness of various algorithms.
AES is the block cipher being developed as a successor to DES. (AES was not completed at the time this guide was published.) It operates under the symmetric key model. Some of the other encryption algorithms listed in this section were submitted as candidates to become AES. The selected algorithm is one called Rijndael (one suggested pronunciation: "rain doll"), a variant of an algorithm called Square.
Blowfish is a block cipher that employs the asymmetric key model. "Blowfish was designed in 1993 by Bruce Schneier as a fast, free alternative to existing encryption algorithms. Since then it has been analyzed considerably, and it is slowly gaining acceptance as a strong encryption algorithm. Blowfish is un-patented and license-free, and is available free for all uses." (Counterpane Internet Security: The Blowfish Encryption Algorithm)
CAST is a group of ciphers. "CAST-128 belongs to the class of encryption algorithms known as Feistel ciphers; overall operation is thus similar to the Data Encryption Standard (DES)." (C. Adams, Entrust Technologies: The CAST-128 Encryption Algorithm) It operates under the symmetric key model.
"It is resistant to both linear and differential cryptanalysis. Currently, there is no known way of breaking CAST short of brute force. There are no known attacks on CAST with reduced rounds it looks incredibly secure. CAST is now the default cipher in PGP." (PGP Diffie-Hellman vs. RSA FAQ: What is CAST?)
"CAST is a family of ciphers. Some of the other 'CAST' ciphers have succumbed to advanced attack. (Rijmen and Preneel have attacked some CAST designs and so have Kelsey, Schneier & Wagner.) The same attacks have been tried against the implementation of CAST used in PGP and have, thus far, failed." (PGP Diffie-Hellman vs. RSA FAQ: What is CAST?)
DES is the current standard encryption algorithm. "DES was developed in the 1970s by the National Bureau of Standards with the help of the National Security Agency" with an algorithm submitted by IBM. (The Next Wave: What is DES?) It operates under the symmetric key model.
"Unfortunately, over time various shortcut attacks were found that could significantly reduce the amount of time needed to find a DES key by brute force. And as computers became progressively faster and more powerful, it was recognized that a 56-bit key was simply not large enough for high security applications." (Tropical Software: DES Encryption (DES)
" On July 17, 1998 the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) announced the construction of a DES brute-force hardware cr