Complete Introduction-to-Cryptography WGU Materials

Skipjack is a symmetric block cipher historically associated with the Clipper chip initiative. Its defining parameters match the question: it operates on 64-bit blocks and uses an 80-bit key. The other options do not fit those exact sizes. Twofish is a 128-bit block cipher with key sizes up to 256 bits. Blowfish is a 64-bit block cipher, but its key size is variable from 32 up to 448 bits and is not fixed at 80 bits as a defining property. Camellia is a 128-bit block cipher with key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits. Skipjack’s smaller key size and legacy design make it unsuitable for modern security needs, but the question is purely about identifying the algorithm that matches an 80-bit key and 64-bit blocks. Therefore, the correct answer is Skipjack.

Bitcoin’s proof of work (PoW) is designed so that finding a valid block is computationally difficult, but checking validity is computationally easy. Miners must repeatedly hash candidate block headers (double SHA-256) with different nonces until they find a hash value below a network-defined target. This trial-and-error search requires significant work and energy because the probability of success per attempt is extremely low at current difficulty levels. However, verification is straightforward: any node can hash the block header once (or a small number of times) and confirm the resulting hash meets the target threshold and that the block contents follow protocol rules. This “hard to produce, easy to verify” property is essential: it makes it expensive for attackers to rewrite history or outpace honest miners, while allowing all participants—even low-power devices—to validate blocks efficiently. Therefore, the primary characteristic of Bitcoin proof of work is that it is difficult to produce and easy to verify.