Informix Error -26008: The internal decryption function failed.

Reasons / Common Causes

-26008 fires when the internal crypto library's decryption API call fails — per the official guidance.

1. A wrong password, per the official guidance — the first named cause.
2. Corrupted data, per the official guidance — the second named cause.

Solutions / Resolution

1. Confirm the decryption password matches the one used to encrypt the data, per the official guidance.
2. Check for corruption of the encrypted data, per the official guidance, and escalate to IBM Informix Technical Support if the issue persists.

Examples

N/A

No specific triggering statement is documented beyond a wrong password or corrupted data.

Diagnostic Checks

1. Confirm the exact password used to encrypt the data, and check for any corruption or truncation of the encrypted value.

Related Errors / Related Topics

• -26005 — "The encrypted data is wrong or corrupted." A related decryption-input error, on the input not being valid encrypted data at all, rather than the crypto API call itself failing.
• -26007 — "The internal encryption function failed." The same class of internal crypto-library API failure, on encryption rather than decryption.

The internal crypto library's decryption API failed, likely due to a wrong password or corrupted data — confirm the password and check for corruption.