AES Encryption Tool

We recommend AES-GCM (Galois/Counter Mode) for most use cases. AES-GCM provides both encryption and authentication (AEAD), meaning it can detect if the ciphertext has been tampered with. AES-CBC is older and requires separate authentication, while AES-CTR operates as a stream cipher. For general-purpose encryption, GCM offers the best balance of security and performance.

The IV is a random value used to ensure that encrypting the same plaintext with the same key produces different ciphertext each time. This prevents pattern analysis attacks. The IV is not secret and can be stored alongside the ciphertext, but it must be unique for each encryption operation with the same key. Our tool automatically generates a cryptographically secure random IV.

This tool uses the Web Crypto API, which provides cryptographically secure operations directly in your browser. All encryption and decryption happens locally on your device - no data is ever sent to our servers. The Web Crypto API is built into modern browsers and uses the same cryptographic primitives as native applications.

The salt is a random value used with PBKDF2 to derive your encryption key from your password. Using a salt prevents attackers from using precomputed rainbow tables to crack passwords. You must save the salt along with the IV to decrypt your data later. Both values can be stored safely alongside your ciphertext as they do not reveal your password.

We recommend 256-bit keys for maximum security. While 128-bit AES is still considered secure against brute-force attacks, 256-bit provides a larger security margin and is required for some compliance frameworks. The key is derived from your password using PBKDF2 with 100,000 iterations, so the strength of your password is equally important.

Yes! This tool supports file encryption up to 10MB. Simply drag and drop a file or click to upload. The file is read into memory and encrypted using your chosen algorithm. The encrypted output can be copied as Base64 or hex. For larger files, consider using dedicated encryption software or our enterprise encryption services.