Editing NSAKEY (section)

{{short description|Variable containing a public key in Windows NT 4.0}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:_NSAKEY}}
'''_NSAKEY''' was a [[variable (computer science)|variable]] name discovered in [[Windows NT 4.0|Windows NT 4 SP5]] in 1999 by Andrew D. Fernandes of Cryptonym Corporation. The variable contained a 1024-bit public key; such keys are used in [[public-key cryptography]] for [[encryption]] (but not decryption). Because of the name, however, it was speculated that the key would allow the United States [[National Security Agency]] (NSA) to subvert any Windows user's security. Microsoft denied the speculation and said that the key's name came from the fact that NSA was the technical review authority for [[Export of cryptography from the United States|U.S. cryptography export controls]].