Introduction to modern cryptography
by Jonathan Katz, Yehuda Lindell · first published 2007
76% recommend18% neutral6% critical
Why HN recommends it
Rigorous but approachable textbook on provable cryptography. It builds from Caesar ciphers and one-time pads, proves results carefully, and suits self-learners and students wanting theory over implementation.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Cryptography plays a key role in ensuring the privacy and integrity of data and the security of computer networks. Introduction to Modern Cryptography provides a rigorous yet accessible treatment of modern cryptography, with a focus on formal definitions, precise assumptions, and rigorous proofs. The authors introduce the core principles of modern cryptography, including the modern, computational approach to security that overcomes the limitations of perfect secrecy. An extensive treatment of private-key encryption and message authentication follows. The authors also illustrate design princ
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…that the whole thing is available online, but believe me when I say that the text is well worth the price if you ever find yourself needing a good cryptography reference. Some other good references are Introduction to Modern Cryptography by Katz and Lindell, Foundations of Cryptography by Goldreich (both volumes), and The Codebreakers by Kahn (for history of cryptography). There are other good references, of course, but I find myself…
on “Handbook of Applied Cryptography (2001)” ↗If you want a more "theoretical" look at the theory, Introduction to Modern Cryptography by Jon Katz and Yehuda Lindell is a great book. Also good (but my copy had many printing errors) is Foundations of Cryptography by Oded Goldreich.
on “So, you want to crypto” ↗tl;dr: To learn about some cryptography fundamentals: * Read Katz & Lindell's Introduction to Modern Cryptography * If you're missing math background, read Timothy Gowers' blog * Supplement: Take Jonathan Katz' and Dan Boneh's MOOCS (links in post) To get to the point where you can "design/analyze crypto protocols"…
on “How Not to Learn Cryptography (2014)” ↗As written below, "Introduction to Modern Cryptography" by Katz & Lindell. Another option would be "A Graduate Course in Applied Cryptography" by Boneh & Shoup. However, for starting out, I would definitely recommend the former as it's more polished and focuses…
on “Ask HN: Best book on modern cryptography?” ↗…someone interested in cryptography, especially from a systems-building perspective. For a mostly-rigorous treatment of the basics and theory of modern cryptography, I am a huge fan of Katz and Lindell's Introduction to Modern Cryptography; I've espoused its virtues several times here on HN. If you want the theoretical background with some application still thrown in, this is a good choice. For a deep theoretical treatment, requiring an…
on “Mathematical Cryptology [pdf]” ↗…exploitable bug, this is a good book to pick up. 12. Cryptography Engineering Very solid and broad introduction to cryptography. Every engineer should read this, even if they don't work in security. 13. Introduction to Modern Cryptography This book, along with #14 is what you want to read if you're going to work as a cryptographer or cryptanalyst professionally. 14. Handbook of Applied Cryptography --------------------------------------…
on “Ask HN: What are the best books for learning information security?” ↗You could do very much worse than Katz & Lindell's "Introduction to Modern Cryptography". It's fairly mathematical, which fits well with Colin's point.
on “Cryptography is a science, not engineering” ↗Needless to say that textbook RSA is insecure, so please, for educational purposes only ;) If you want to learn why, I can advise "Introduction to modern cryptography" by Lindell and Katz, or "Modern cryptography" by W. Mao.
on “The math behind RSA encryption” ↗…right now). Almost all modern systems combine primitives like AES in such a way as to meet our expectations. Except perhaps Telegram but nobody knows what they're smoking. If you want an actual textbook, Introduction to Modern Cryptography by Katz and Lindell, or Cryptography Made Simple by Nigel Smart will cover this in plenty of detail, and are also good all round introductions to most areas of cryptography by leading experts. I learn…
on “Why I Wrote PGP (1999)” ↗For a rigorous, yet accessible and rather in-depth introduction to modern, provable cryptography I would recommend "Introduction to Modern Cryptography" by Katz & Lindell. It starts from the basics, the proofs are thoroughly elaborated and it has an appendix covering the necessary math prerequisites.
on “Ask HN: Best book on modern cryptography?” ↗My graduate Applied Cryptography class used Katz and Lindell's "Introduction to Modern Cryptography." It's widely used at top institutions. While it definitely can be intimidating at time, the authors provides a classical approach to the topic. I found it had a nice balance of theory and application.
on “Intro to Cryptography [pdf]” ↗I've been through Introduction to Modern Cryptography by Katz and Lindell. Can recommend, as it starts with Caesars cipher, one time pads, and builds towards modern cryptography.
on “Why are neural networks and cryptographic ciphers so similar?” ↗…anything newer than SHA-1. But SHA-1 is thoroughly deprecated, and will be broken in the next few years. Just buy a new book instead; I hear good things about Cryptography Engineering, and I liked "An Introduction to Modern Cryptography" (more mathematical, less engineering-focused).
on “Handbook of Applied Cryptography (2001)” ↗Strong recommendation to read this book; it's a pretty approachable introduction to modern cryptography and the people we have to thank for where we are today.
on “Mythology About Security” ↗…probably won't work for your friend as it doesn't cover any algorithms in detail. It's a great topic to cover a lot of ground quickly to gain a good understanding of how cryptography is used in practice. - "Introduction to Modern Cryptography" is used as a textbook on many universities and I recommend it for someone who doesn't mind diving in into the maths. Being a textbook, it's fairly academic. - "The Code Book: The Secret History of Codes…
on “Ask HN: Any interesting books about cryptography?” ↗