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  • Published: 18 May 2021
  • ISBN: 9781718501409
  • Imprint: No Starch
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 160
  • RRP: $65.00

Crypto Dictionary

500 Tasty Tidbits for the Curious Cryptographer



Crypto Dictionary is your full reference resource for all things cryptography.

Cryptography from A5/0 to ZRTP

Expand your mind—and your crypto knowledge—with the ultimate desktop dictionary for all things cryptography. Written by a globally recognized cryptographer for fellow experts and novices to the field alike, Crypto Dictionary is rigorous in its definitions, yet easy to read and laced with humor. You’ll find:

• A survey of crypto algorithms both widespread and niche, from RSA and DES to the USSR’s GOST cipher
• Trivia from the history of cryptography, such as the MINERVA backdoor in Crypto AG’s encryption algorithms, which may have let the US read the secret communications of foreign governments
• An explanation of why the reference to the Blowfish cipher in the TV show 24 makes absolutely no sense
• Discussions of numerous cryptographic attacks, like the slide attack and biclique attack (and the meaning of a crypto “attack”)
• Types of cryptographic proofs, such as zero-knowledge proofs of spacetime
• A polemic against referring to cryptocurrency as “crypto”
• A look toward the future of cryptography, with discussions of the threat of quantum computing poses to our current cryptosystems and a nod to post-quantum algorithms, such as lattice-based cryptographic schemes

Or, flip to any random page and learn something new, interesting, and mind-boggling for fun. Organized alphabetically, with hundreds of incisive entries and illustrations at your fingertips, Crypto Dictionary is the crypto world go-to guide that you’ll always want within reach.

  • Published: 18 May 2021
  • ISBN: 9781718501409
  • Imprint: No Starch
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 160
  • RRP: $65.00

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Praise for Crypto Dictionary

"An opinionated mix of witty definitions, mentions of niche cryptographic constructions and obscure algorithms, historical curiosities, and cryptography nerd jokes . . . As written in its introduction, Crypto Dictionary is meant to be an entertaining read, so that 'any reader can open the book at a random page and discover a yet unknown notion, excavate an obscure concept, or read an anecdote about a familiar term.', and it perfectly fulfils this role." —Julien Voisin, Dustri.org