Abstract-Security and confidentiality are the major concerns in information technology enabled services wherein data security, user authentication, industrial security and message authentication have a great deal of access to the world anywhere, anytime. The implication is: there is a need for efficient methods to secure digital data across different platforms. The concept of cellular automata finds application in the design of efficient methods to secure digital information. It is a recent field of research and its recognition has been on the rise with its high parallel structure and ability to design complex dynamic systems. In this paper, we study the basic concepts of different types of cellular automata and also discuss its applications in cryptography with various examples.