key pair

A set of mathematically related keys -- a public key and a private key -- that are used for asymmetric cryptography and are generated in a way that makes it computationally infeasible to derive the private key from knowledge of the public key. (See: Diffie-Hellman-Merkle, RSA.)

Tutorial: A key pair's owner discloses the public key to other system entities so they can use the key to (a) encrypt data, (b) verify a digital signature, or (c) generate a key with a key- agreement algorithm. The matching private key is kept secret by the owner, who uses it to (a') decrypt data, (b') generate a digital signature, or (c') generate a key with a key-agreement algorithm.