What is the reason for using both asymmetric and symmetric encryption in the HTTPS protocol?

HTTPS protocol uses both types of encryption — asymmetric and symmetric — to achieve a balance between security and performance.

• Asymmetric encryption (with public and private keys) is used during the connection establishment phase (TLS handshake). It provides secure key exchange, allowing the client and server to agree on a secret symmetric key without the risk of interception.

• Symmetric encryption is used to encrypt the main traffic after the connection is established. It is much faster than asymmetric encryption and suitable for processing large volumes of data.

Thus, asymmetric encryption ensures secure key exchange, while symmetric encryption provides efficient data encryption during the session.