| | |  | Computer Security | Home » » Modern Cryptanalysis: Techniques for Advanced Code Breaking | | | | | | | Product Promotions: | | | | | Description: | | As an instructor at the University of Tulsa, Christopher Swenson could find no relevant text for teaching modern cryptanalysis?so he wrote his own. This is the first book that brings the study of cryptanalysis into the 21st century. Swenson provides a foundation in traditional cryptanalysis, examines ciphers based on number theory, explores block ciphers, and teaches the basis of all modern cryptanalysis: linear and differential cryptanalysis. This time-honored weapon of warfare has become a key piece of artillery in the battle for information security. | | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Christopher Swenson | | Hardcover:
| 264 pages | | Publisher:
| Wiley | | Publication Date:
| March 17, 2008 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 047013593X | | Product Length:
| 9.62 inches | | Product Width:
| 7.41 inches | | Product Height:
| 0.81 inches | | Product Weight:
| 1.21 pounds | | Package Length:
| 9.5 inches | | Package Width:
| 7.5 inches | | Package Height:
| 0.8 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.2 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 5 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
 More like class notes than a bookJan 10, 2010
By W. Sturgis
The author says he wrote this book for a class he was teaching. Perhaps this book would be more useful if I were in that class. Since I am not, there are many things in this book that are insufficiently explained. There are almost no worked examples and the ones that are there are short on detail. As you move towards the more advanced parts of the book, it becomes even less detailed.
I bought this book almost entirely because of the title and the fact that when I flipped through it, I saw some math. I should have noticed (but didn't) that it was a Wiley book. In my opinion, these are almost always short on detail and full of padding and repetition. This book reminded me to avoid Wiley books no matter what the title is. They seem to always let me down.
It gets a couple of stars because it does contain a good bibliography. I have learned more studying the cited books and papers than the book itself. I believe (or hope, I can't tell) the author knows this material, but was led astray by his editor.
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
A daring but far from consummate attemptAug 29, 2008
By Magdy Saeb
"book virtuoso"
This is a daring but far from consummate attempt to provide a text on "modern cryptanalysis". The material gathered from different sources may prove helpful to some of the newcomers in this area. A large part of the material presented is not on cryptanalysis but rather serves as an overview of basic cryptography.
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 An entertaining read on an advanced subject!Aug 26, 2011
By Ellery Kazen Bann
I like to spend my free time reading up on general tech stuff. Cryptography and cryptanalysis is a very interesting area. Thru the years I've accumulated a few books on cryptology and confess that I rarely finished them. I blame it on the text being too dry and too technical (not really a bad thing) and thus my attention span (and curiosity to delve further) starts to dwindle. This book is different! It is actually quite fun to read. Definitely a book written by a geek (Sorry Christopher!) and for geeks (Yes, I'm a geek and I'm proud of it!). Klingons, Shakespeare, poker, math on-the-need-to-know basis, some examples and exercises, and also... my favorite: CODE! I took this opportunity to learn Python (the sample code was written in Python) which is truly an elegant and simple language for anyone to learn. If I have to point out a flaw, it would be this: the text could have been a bit more clearer, but nothing that careful slow reading won't solve. I have not yet finished reading the book, but I know I will (it ain't too thick!). I am taking my time to actually produce Python code to test my understanding of the cryptographic cipher implementation, and cryptanalysis tools and techniques. I'll end this review with a question: Why is it that I obtained an Index of Coincidence of 0.0637 for The Complete Works of William Shakespeare instead of the author's 0.0639?
2 of 6 found the following review helpful:
Good primer for cryptographyMay 05, 2009
By Don Franke
I do not have a mathematics background, but I wanted to get a deeper understanding of cryptography in general, as well as a little more detail on the different kinds of encryption solutions out there, with the option of digging deeper into the actual math and mechanics behind them. This book allow me to do this. Overall, it provides three things:
* Background and history of cryptography
* Overview of the important cryptographic solutions currently being used (S-boxes, Feistel structures, DES, etc.)
* Details on mathematics of how encryption algorithms work, to the point of understanding their exploitable vulnerabilities, not just their well-publicized strengths
Each chapter is also concluded with a summary and exercises, to help you better understand and learn by doing. The following are three chapters I thought that really stood out.
Simple Ciphers
This chapter provides an excellent introduction to the beginnings of cryptography (ROT13, even Klingon!) This chapter dovetails nicely into coincidence and how to start performing cryptanalysis, studying algorithmic flaws. As an aside, the discussion on the Vigenere Tableau goes well with the more detailed chapter on the same topic in The Code Book by Simon Singh.
Number Theoretical Ciphers
What I liked about this chapter is that it contained sections like Probability, which begins with what every Stats course begins with: the coin flip. But subtly the chapter gets more complicated, evolving to permutations, dependence, then breaks with the section Fun With Poker. After this is the Birthday Paradox, an important demonstration of probability, then moves on to cryptographic hashes. This is an example of how the chapters work: they start out with the basics, then lead you into more and more detail.
The section Number Theory Refresher Course in this chapter was the reason I got the book, and I wasn't disappointed. It gets the reader ready for the involved math that is to follow in the rest of the book.
Block Ciphers
This chapters covers all the different forms of modern block ciphers. It begins with an overview of binary arithmetic, then moves on to the S-box, P-box, and shift registers. FEAL, DES, and Fiestel Structures are covered, including some demonstrative Python code. All of the other important ciphers are also included: Blowfish, AES, MD5, each with it's own quick history section. Random Number Generators earns its own section, importantly, because it's the generation of predictable numbers that often is the flaw in cryptographic implementations.
Summary
I got what I wanted out of the book: a good background on fundamental concepts of cryptography, a good introduction on how cryptanalysis can be performed on what seems to be unbreakable ciphers, and enough math to keep me busy for a long time. There's also some Python code snippets to help explain how how some pieces of encryption solutions work. Also at the end of each chapter is a list of references, providing ample reading material to continue your learning.
If you are interested in cryptography beyond just to how to implement prepackaged solutions, this book is a great primer. This would also serve as a great textbook for any cryptography class.
3 of 18 found the following review helpful:
 Modern Cryptanalysis: Techniques for Advanced Code BreakingApr 01, 2008
By slickcat
"slickcat"
Very informative. Mono alphabetic ciphers,Poly alphabetic ciphers,Transposition ciphers and Cryptanalysis.Modern Cryptanalysis: Techniques for Advanced Code Breaking
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