Cryptology

Cryptology

Cryptology

For centuries, cryptology has been used for providing secure communication over insecure channels. Historically, however, cryptology used to be concerned with confidential communication in closed groups. It was practiced mostly in military circles under great secrecy and mysticism, and was considered more like an art form than as a science. It is only in recent years (i.e since about 1970) that cryptology has emerged as an interesting topic for open research.

Today, cryptology has provided practical results essential for implementing e.g. DAN-card transactions, Home banking, and secure electronic commerce on the Internet. At the same time, it is a rapidly growing research area, firmly rooted in both mathematics and computer science. It draws on topics such as algebra, number theory, combinatorics, complexity theory and algorithmics.

The course will cover the following concepts: information theory, symmetric and public-key cryptosystems, digital signatures, hash functions, key management and secret sharing. In addition, some number theory and complexity theory will be covered, to the extent necessary to understand the central concepts.

Throughout, we will look at both theory and practical applications. As a characteristic example, the digital signatures rutinely used in Danish home banking transactions cannot be implemented without the use of non-trivial number theory, and a substantial programming effort to get an efficient system.

The course is offered to both computer science and mathematics students. It will end with a project that for some students may take the form of a programming project, and may be a study of one or more article for others.

Lecturer Ivan Damgård

Literature Course notes and Stinson: Cryptography, Theory and Practice