Searchable symmetric encryption

Imagine you have a diary where you write down all your secrets, but someone else wants to read it without your permission. So, you decide to put a lock on it. Now, even if someone gets hold of your diary, they can't read it without the key.

Similarly, when you store information in a computer, you want it to be protected from any unauthorized access. This is where searchable symmetric encryption comes in.

Searchable symmetric encryption is like putting a lock on your data, but with a special feature. It allows you to search and retrieve specific information from your encrypted data without having to decrypt everything first.

Here's an example: let's say you have a list of all the books you own, and you encrypted it with a searchable symmetric encryption method. If you want to find a specific book in your list, instead of decrypting the entire list and scrolling through it manually, you can just search for the book's name, and the system will retrieve only the relevant encrypted data, decrypt it, and show you the result.

So, in summary, searchable symmetric encryption is like a lockbox that not only keeps your data secure but also allows you to search within it without revealing everything to anyone who doesn't have the key.