Classical and Contemporary Cryptology (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is a well-written textbook, one destined to become an undergraduate favorite in the fascinating and rewarding study of cryptology." — Atul Prakash, University of Michigan

"Dr. Spillman's Cryptographic Analysis Program, (CAP), is not only a fantastic teaching tool, it's very useful to the cryptanalyst as well. I've used it in teaching a practical security course for the last four years." — Scott Orr, Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis

From the Back Cover

Some people work hard at encoding their secrets; other people work just as hard at deciphering them. Students of cryptology must learn to understand the thinking and techniques of both sides. As Dr. Spillman explores the world of cryptology, he spans introductory to advanced topics, presenting the history and methodology of spies, code breakers, code talkers, and present-day computer hackers and attackers. The cryptographic analysis software included with the book enables students to perform simple hands-on activities that teach them to think like a cryptographer as they learn to fend off attacks or secure software systems.

Important features:

• Coverage of both classical and contemporary cryptology allows students to learn current methods by understanding their origins in early work.
• The included CAP software package allows students to test their skills while instructors can add interesting new challenges.
• Stream cipher coverage lets students see how an important cipher is implemented in practice.
• Use of block ciphers in a network introduces students to the actual use of a cipher system.
• Charts ending each chapter illustrate how newly covered ciphers fit in and the interrelationships that exist between ciphers.
• Optional chapter on quantum computing offers advanced study topics.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall (May 26, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0131828312
• ISBN-13: 978-0131828315
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,100,591 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars use hashing instead of a full cipher, if possible, June 19, 2006

By	W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

[For some strange reason, in the 2 years since this book was published, there are no reviews of it?!]

Spillman makes the good point early in this book that cryptology is not restricted to the current computer era. Prior to computers, many ingenious classical schemes were devised. And the successful cryptographer had to develop an intuition without the aid of a fast computer by her side. Accordingly, Spillman splits his narrative into 3 parts. The first is on classical methods, starting with the Caesar cipher. All these could and were first done without computers.

The second part involves only computer-based ciphers. Notably the public key systems first and still foremost embodied by RSA. He also goes into important related ideas like one way hash functions; explaining the 2 most important, MD5 and SHA-1. Readers should note carefully that if they are faced with a problem where hashing is adequate, instead of needed a full encrypt and decrypt cipher, then they should use hashing. It is far simpler, since it does not involve issues of key management and revocation. And hashing is usually quicker than a full cipher, which is another important advantage.

The last part of the book is rather speculative. It discusses possible future ciphers. Basically, it is about quantum computing. A fundamentally different worldview. The possibilities for vastly more powerful deciphering are explained as a parallel search through a quantum phase space, producing a plaintext observable. However, the current state of achievable lab results is very primitive. Essentially amounting to being able to factor a small number. There are severe problems with quantum decoherence that experimentalists are struggling with. This portion of the book can be read purely as precautionary, at least for the near future. Just something to keep an eye on.

Also worth noting is that the book comes with a CD of custom code. This is called CAP by the book. A program that lets you encipher and decipher text that you can input. The user interface is minimalist, but that is all that is needed. There is a choice of ciphers, as described in the book. Neat way to avoid some of the tedious low level computational steps. It lets you concentrate on understanding a cipher at a higher level, in a modular or object oriented approach. Plus, for those of you who actually dig this field, CAP is fun to play with, while still being extremely educational.