Handbook of Applied Cryptography (Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications) (Hardcover)

~ Alfred Menezes (Editor), Paul van Oorschot (Editor), Scott Vanstone (Editor) "Cryptography has a long and fascinating history..." (more)
Key Phrases: key notarization, pseudorandom bit generation, artificially small parameters, Definition Let, Fact Let, Algorithm Key (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

[This book] is an incredible achievement. … [T]he handbook is complete. If I want to check what problems there were with a proposed system, determine how the variations on a particular algorithm developed, see what research preceded and followed an idea, I go to the Handbook. The Handbook has accurate, clear, and correct information. It is wonderful. … If I were limited to only one cryptography text on my shelves, it would be the Handbook of Applied Cryptography.
- Bulletin of the AMS

[This book] is an incredible achievement. … [T]he handbook is complete. If I want to check what problems there were with a proposed system, determine how the variations on a particular algorithm developed, see what research preceded and followed an idea, I go to the Handbook. The Handbook has accurate, clear, and correct information. It is wonderful. … If I were limited to only one cryptography text on my shelves, it would be the Handbook of Applied Cryptography.
- Bulletin of the AMS

…very well suited for the reader who wants an encyclopedic description of the state of the art of applied modern cryptography.
-Mathematical Reviews, Issue 99g

…very well suited for the reader who wants an encyclopedic description of the state of the art of applied modern cryptography.
-Mathematical Reviews, Issue 99g

Product Description

Cryptography, in particular public-key cryptography, has emerged in the last 20 years as an important discipline that is not only the subject of an enormous amount of research, but provides the foundation for information security in many applications. Standards are emerging to meet the demands for cryptographic protection in most areas of data communications. Public-key cryptographic techniques are now in widespread use, especially in the financial services industry, in the public sector, and by individuals for their personal privacy, such as in electronic mail. This Handbook will serve as a valuable reference for the novice as well as for the expert who needs a wider scope of coverage within the area of cryptography. It is a necessary and timely guide for professionals who practice the art of cryptography. The Handbook of Applied Cryptography provides a treatment that is multifunctional:

Product Details

• Hardcover: 780 pages
• Publisher: CRC Press; 1 edition (December 16, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0849385237
• ISBN-13: 978-0849385230
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.1 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #202,505 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #26 in	Books > Computers & Internet > Programming > Algorithms > Cryptography
  #36 in	Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Combinatorics
  #44 in	Books > Science > Mathematics > Pure Mathematics > Discrete Mathematics

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reference indeed, September 27, 2001

By	"optimistix" (London, UK) - See all my reviews

If you're going to work in the area of Cryptography, you can't afford
to neglect this book.

We used this in a course, and even though it's a handbook, it doubles up
pretty well as a textbook, since it has all the underlying mathematical
theory, presented in a clear and concise manner.

For sheer breadth and depth of coverage, this book is unmatched in the
field. It may not have enough on some topics to satisfy everyone, but
then i suspect most such topics were not so prominent in 1996, which
is when the book was written.

Starting with number theory, it goes on cover pseudorandom bits and
sequences, stream and block ciphers, hash functions, and digital signatures,
establishment protocols, implementation, patents and standards - you name
it, you got it.

On the one hand, there's enough theory to make you wonder whether it
should be called 'applied', but then it indeed qualifies as implementations
are discussed as well.

And of course, there's an exhaustive bibliography, with more pointers to
the literature than one could possibly follow up.

One word of caution, though : it requires hard work. If you want a more
'relaxed' coverage of comparable breadth (but not depth), you can do
worse than look up Bruce Schneier's 'Applied Crypography', which is a
delightful read, but nowhere as rigorous (read academic) as this one.

All in all, this is an indispensable reference for those in the field -
rigorous and exhaustive, yet eminently readable.

If you still haven't made your mind up, here's one final piece of advice :
visit the authors'(rather the book's) website, where you'll get the
implementations of all the algorithms in the book, and a (presumably)
pleasant surprise :-)

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough and complete, June 14, 1999

By	Gerardus A. Weijers (Tucson, AZ, USA) - See all my reviews

Menezes et. al. provide a thorough review of the field of cryptography. It's the first book I grab when I'm looking for something. Much more in depth than Bruce Scheier's "Applied Cryptography"

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent reference for anyone in computer science, June 25, 2002

By	Hart Wilson (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A thorough coverage of topics in cryptography is only one of many features which make this book invaluable to computer scientists. While not intended to be a textbook, this handbook includes enough background information to be of use to those with minimal theoretical computer science knowledge. The chapter organization is logical and very modular so that after reading the introductory chapters, one can skip ahead to the chapters of interest with little difficulty.
The second chapter provides a concise review of probability theory, information theory, complexity theory, and number theory. This chapter would be helpful to anyone in computer science who already has some discrete math background. For readers with no discrete math background I would recommend first reading "Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications" by Kenneth Rosen, the editor of the series this book belongs to.
The coverage of number-theoretic problems in chapter 3 is very easy to follow and provides a handy reference to the average case performance of the best known algorithms for each.
The next few chapters are very math-intensive and outline the most common encryption algorithms and standards with examples. The chapter on block ciphers includes a section on classical ciphers and cryptanalysis which, as a sidenote, might be of interest to students of linguistics.
The later chapters present protocols for authentication, digital signing, and key management which build on the algorithms of the previous chapters, but can be understood independently.
One of the final chapters presents methods of effecient computation which again would be useful to anyone in computer science, not just those who are interested in cryptography.
Overall, the development of the topics in the book is complete (although by no means rigorous) and concise, including examples only where necessary. I highly recommend this book to students who want to learn more about cryptography, anyone whose job requires some knowledge of standards for authentication, digital signing, etc., such as internet security, and any computer scientist who has an academic interest in algorithms and their applications.