elliptic

What is elliptic?

The elliptic npm package provides a collection of utilities for elliptic curve cryptography. It supports various elliptic curve operations such as key pair generation, digital signature creation and verification, and ECDH (Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman) key agreement. This makes it a versatile tool for implementing secure cryptographic functions in Node.js applications.

What are elliptic's main functionalities?

Key Pair Generation

This feature allows the generation of elliptic curve key pairs, which are fundamental for cryptographic operations. The example demonstrates generating a new key pair using the secp256k1 curve, which is widely used in blockchain technologies.

const EC = require('elliptic').ec;
const ec = new EC('secp256k1');

// Generate a new key pair
const keyPair = ec.genKeyPair();

// Get the public and private keys as hex strings
const publicKey = keyPair.getPublic().encode('hex');
const privateKey = keyPair.getPrivate().toString('hex');

Digital Signature

This feature enables the creation and verification of digital signatures, which are crucial for ensuring the integrity and authenticity of data. The code sample shows how to sign a message and then export the signature in DER format.

const EC = require('elliptic').ec;
const ec = new EC('secp256k1');

// Generate keys
const key = ec.genKeyPair();

// Sign a message
const msg = 'Hello world';
const signature = key.sign(msg);

// Export the signature to DER format
const derSign = signature.toDER();

ECDH Key Agreement

This feature supports Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH), a key agreement protocol that allows two parties to establish a shared secret over an insecure channel. The example demonstrates how two parties can generate a shared secret.

const EC = require('elliptic').ec;
const ec = new EC('curve25519');

// Generate keys for two parties
const key1 = ec.genKeyPair();
const key2 = ec.genKeyPair();

// Derive shared secret
const shared1 = key1.derive(key2.getPublic());
const shared2 = key2.derive(key1.getPublic());

// Shared secrets should be the same
console.log(shared1.toString(16) === shared2.toString(16));

Other packages similar to elliptic

secp256k1

This package focuses specifically on the secp256k1 elliptic curve, offering functionalities similar to elliptic but with optimizations for speed and security. It is often used in Bitcoin and Ethereum projects.

node-forge

node-forge is a comprehensive Node.js library that includes a wide range of cryptographic operations, including those related to elliptic curves. While it covers more than elliptic curve cryptography, it is generally heavier and more complex to use for specific elliptic curve operations.

tweetnacl

tweetnacl is a port of NaCl, the Networking and Cryptography library, to JavaScript. It offers a variety of cryptographic primitives, including elliptic curve cryptography, with a focus on simplicity and small size. It's a good alternative for projects requiring lightweight cryptography solutions.