The invention concerns a cryptographic method which includes integer division of the type q=a div b and/or a modular reduction of the type r=a mod b, with q being a quotient, a being a number of m bits, b being a number of n bits, n being not more than m and b.sub.n-1 being the most significant bit of the number b. The number a is masked by a random number p before performing the integer division and/or the modular reduction. The invention also concerns an electronic component for implementing the method. The invention is applicable for making smart cards secure against hidden channel attacks, and in particular differential attacks.