Dialog Generation of Random Numbers

You can open this dialog using the menu entry Individual Procedures \ Tools \ Generate Random Numbers.

The concept of randomness plays an increasingly important role not only in information science but also in modern cryptography. Random data is required in cryptography for a number of different purposes. Amongst other things, it plays an important role in key generation for asymmetric encryption algorithms.

Random data is generated using a so-called pseudorandom number generator. An example for such a generator is offered by Secude GmbH.

A pseudorandom number generator is a deterministic algorithm which generates a sequence of numbers that possess as many of the properties of a random sequence of numbers as possible.

A pseudorandom number generator may produce the right statistics as far as the numbers it generates are concerned, yet have unacceptable security defects as far as cryptography is concerned. In order to be usable for cryptographic purposes, not only must the number sequences generated satisfy the statistical requirements, but they must also exhibit a certain form of unpredictability.

zufallsdaten.gif

In this dialog a selection of both "cryptographically strong" and also insecure pseudorandom number generators have been implemented.

The derived file is dependent not only on the seed and the file length (in bytes) but also on other parameters. The relevant parameters can be adjusted by clicking on the "Choose generator-specific parameters" button.

It is easy to appreciate that truly random bit sequences can never be generated by a deterministic algorithm.

The randomness of binary data can be analyzed e.g. via the FIPS-PUB 140 test.