Apple set to introduce CryptoKit in iOS 13

Startups • June 4, 2019, 6:02AM EDT
UPDATED: June 5, 2019, 10:07AM EDT
The Block

Apple is set to announce CryptoKit, a new framework to "perform cryptographic operations securely and efficiently," at WWDC 2019. CryptoKit will be available in Apple's upcoming iOS 13. Apple's team will unveil CryptoKit capabilities in a WWDC session titled "Cryptography and Your Apps" on Wednesday, June 5, 2019. 

CryptoKit will allow developers to carry out common cryptographic operations including hashing, key generation and encryption. Developers will now be able to automatically handle tasks that make their app more secure rather than handling them in lower-level interfaces.

According to Alejandro Machado, co-founder at Open Money Initiative, the implications for cryptocurrency developers are significant: "For the first time, developers can leverage the secure enclave to manage a user’s keys in an iPhone, achieving a similar level of security to hardware wallets."

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Per Apple, the following key functionality will exist in CryptoKit:

  • Compute and compare cryptographically secure digests.

  • Use public-key cryptography to create and evaluate digital signatures, and to perform key exchange. In addition to working with keys stored in memory, you can also use private keys stored in and managed by the Secure Enclave.

  • Generate symmetric keys, and use them in operations like message authentication and encryption.

The full CryptoKit developer documentation can be found at Apple Developer.

About Author

Mike Dudas is one of the founders of The Block and was the CEO until April 2020 and a board member until April 2021. Prior to starting The Block, Mike was co-founder and CRO of Button, the leading global, mobile performance marketing platform. Mike is a builder of mobile commerce businesses, having worked at Google, Braintree/Venmo and PayPal. Early in his career, Mike worked in corporate M&A and strategy for Disney. Mike earned a BA from Stanford and an MBA from Kellogg.