What encryption method is commonly used by mobile applications to secure data?

Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is commonly used in mobile applications to secure data, particularly for establishing secure communications over the internet. PKI utilizes a pair of cryptographic keys: a public key, which can be shared with anyone, and a private key, which is kept secret by the owner. This method enables secure data transmission through encryption, as it allows users to encrypt data with the recipient’s public key. Only the recipient, with their corresponding private key, can decrypt this data, ensuring confidentiality and security.

In the context of mobile applications, PKI is pivotal for tasks such as authenticating users, securing communications (like those over HTTPS), and verifying the integrity of messages. This method is advantageous because it provides not just encryption but also authentication through digital certificates issued by trusted certificate authorities.

The other methods listed, while important in their own contexts, serve different primary purposes and are not as widely utilized in the manner that PKI is for mobile data security. For instance, symmetric encryption uses a single key for both encryption and decryption, whereas hashing transforms data into a fixed string and is irreversible, making it unsuitable for scenarios where data needs to be encrypted and decrypted repeatedly. Encryption key management is a critical aspect of cryptographic practices but does not