How safe is AES-256 encryption?
The U.S. Government has replaced the Triple DES standard with the similar but more advanced AES standard, even for TOP SECRET documents. Our system uses a 256bit key - a key so large it is difficult to imagine (approximately 11 followed by 76 zeros.)
To mount a brute force attack on a key this large would require trying 7.34 x 1059 keys every second for the remaining estimated life of the solar system - or about 5 billion years. AES encryption is very safe.