Abstract

The 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard is the only block cipher that is known to be widely deployed among the other block ciphers, in relation to disk encryption, transport layer security, payment gateways and secure communications. Despite its ubiquitous nature, there is fragmented literature covering the broad spectrum of attacks on this scheme. Algebraic and differential attacks are covered in a theoretical nature, side channel attacks in either embedded systems or journals of hardware security and statistical tests in implementation evaluations standards, there are fragmented and rarely found in one literature review document. This study consolidates a unified document spanning sixteen principal attacks across twelve categories, such as differential cryptanalysis, brute force attacks, linear cryptanalysis, algebraic attacks, biclique attacks, slide attacks, cube attacks, boomerang attacks, statistical attacks, cache timing side channel attacks, impossible differential attacks, integral (Square) attacks, meet-in-the-middle attacks, related-key attacks and power analysis side-channel attacks. Each attack model has a formal mathematical expression, the precise data and time complexity as applied to AES, the nature of AES resistance mechanism and the residual practical risks where possible. A comparative evaluation against nine previous works shows that there exists no detailed and in-depth work as demonstrated in this research. One of the main objectives of this study is to produce a unified document that serves as a cryptanalysis guide and a resource for researchers working on developing new variants of AES to counter existing attacks. The guide further contains details on the structural limitations of AES and its modified variants.

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