🚀 go-pugleaf

Being a new user of PGP2.0 some questions came to mind.
I know this subject was discussed before, I'm sure my 
questions were answered... so sorry for the repeats but pgp subjects have been
completely washed by the current trial thread (not that I mind at all mind you)

My questions are as follow:

What is the degree of protection pgp2.0 provides to a brute force attack?
keeping in mind that the core process is (to my understanding) based on
the IDEA cipher and NOT RSA.  Can we compare the different key strengths?
512 bit 1024 bit etc...?  How do these compare to the current level of
hardware capability in the most equipped individuals etc?

What (if any) methods can be used to make an intelligent (i.e., not brute
force) attack on PGP2.0?  Is the key structure via RSA easier or would the
IDEA cipher (which I had the impression was more "secure" than DES in that
it had not yet been circumvented) be the likely target.  What of a comparison
of the difficulty of such an act compared to the level of hardware available?

Given the responses I will definately get telling me the security is relitive
to the expense of the decryption compared to the benefit of decryption let's
assume unlimited cost.  :In other words, if some agency really tried hard.
(Matter of nuclear terrorism FOR EXAMPLE [THATS EXAMPLE you people in domestic
intelligence...jez] :)  How long would it really take...?

I get the impression (from pgp's author) that the IDEA cipher has been tried
extensively... Europe mostly I guess but there are no specifics given to the
technical reasons for his selection of IDEA as the core.  Likewise, there
are no statistics on the RSA key management scheme and its' level of
complexity/security.  How many operations are we really talking here for
a brute force attack to the IDEA cipher and/or RSA ?

Despite looks at the FAQ and the last 3000 or so sci.crypt messages, I find
no answer to this question... hope I'm not missing something real stupid 
somewhere....

I would ask you to e-mail, but I think there might be others intersted in the
same questions.... so post to the net eh?

Thanks in advance...
uni
uni@acs.bu.edu

-- 
uni@acs.bu.edu   Public Keys by finger and request