Evaluating the Impact of Cryptographic Algorithms on Network Performance

Cryptographic algorithms enable secure data communication over public insecure networks. Though they enhance network security, complex cryptographic operations consume substantial amounts of computing resources, introducing significant network overhead costs. This study aims to find the cryptographic algorithm that can efficiently utilize network resources. The study evaluates three cryptographic algorithms with different file formats on varying numbers of node densities. The NS-3 simulator was used to measure latency, data throughput, end-to-end delay, packet delivery ratio, and packet loss of files in text, image, and audio formats. The results find AES as better than DES and 3DES for a large number of node densities for the three file formats in terms of latency, data throughput, end-to-end delay, and packet delivery ratio. However, DES has the lowest packet loss as AES records the highest packet loss. The findings provide researchers avenues for further research and the practitioners the choice of suitable algorithms based on the overhead performance.