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Null encryption
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<p>In modern <a href="/facts/Cryptography/e94PEVau">cryptography</a>, null encryption (or selecting null cipher or NONE cipher) is choosing not to use encryption in a system where various encryption options are offered. When this option is used, the text is the same before and after encryption, which can be practical for testing/debugging, or <a href="/facts/Authentication/64y4S69b">authentication</a>-only communication. In mathematics such a function is known as the <a href="/facts/Identity_function/9AtsP0LC">identity function</a>. </p><p>Examples of this are the "eNULL" and "aNULL" cipher suite in <a href="/facts/OpenSSL/aXvs5fo2">OpenSSL</a>, and the "NULL Encryption Algorithm" in <a href="/facts/IPSec/01MwcET1">IPSec</a>. </p>