I would like to understand a bit how Aescrypt works. Since I only know little about cryptography and programming, I wanted to ask a question about how the files are created by Aescrypt?
For example, I would like to know how Aescrypt stores the password/key in the encrypted files.
Would this be on-topic for this SE?
(I asked and was told that this in general would not be on-topic on Security.SE)
Even if AESCrypt contains some cryptographic code, a question about how AESCrypt works is only appropriate if the question itself is about cryptography.
For example, “what file name does AESCrypt use for keys” is off-topic here. This has nothing to do with cryptography.
On the other hand, a question like “why does AESCrypt use this seemingly slow method to perform an RSA encryption” would be on-topic (the answer being presumably to avoid a side-channel attack).
As questions about the internals of a specific program are (logically) pretty code-related, I think it would not really fit Crypto.SE.
Crypto.SE has no problems explaining the workings of crypto, and maybe even handling some code-specific questions related to crypto-implementation. But - according to my personal point of view - questions that ask how a specific program implemented it's individual file-structure is less cryptographic and more code-related. In other words: if you'ld ask how AES crypto works, this is the right place… if you ask what individual file format/structure some crypto-software uses, it's less appropriate for Crypto.SE.
A little tip aside: Have you tried contacting the authors of AEScrypt? Most software developers (like me) have no problem sharing information about the file-structure their software uses. I'm pretty sure the AEScrypt software developer(s) will provide the most precise information about the AEScrypt file format.
