Serious Cryptography, 2nd Edition

This practical guide to modern encryption breaks down the fundamental mathematical concepts at the heart of cryptography without shying away from meaty discussions of how they work. You'll learn about authenticated encryption, secure randomness, hash functions, block ciphers, and public-key techniques such as RSA and elliptic curve cryptography. You'll also learn: key concepts in cryptography, such as computational security, attacker models, and forward secrecy; the strengths and limitations of the TLS protocol behind HTTPS secure websites; quantum computation and post-quantum cryptography; about various vulnerabilities by examining numerous code examples and use cases; how to choose the best algorithm or protocol and ask vendors the right questions. Each chapter includes a discussion of common implementation mistakes using real-world examples and details what could go wrong and how to avoid these pitfalls. This new second edition has been thoroughly revised and updated, with a new chapter on Cryptocurrency. Whether you're a seasoned practitioner or a beginner looking to dive into the field, Serious Cryptography will provide a complete survey of modern encryption and its applications.

“Like having a wise friend explain all of cryptography's mysteries without making your head spin. The book stands out for its practical approach, which provides real-world applications and insights. It is considered mandatory reading for security engineers undergoing onboarding within my team, providing an essential foundation for their professional development.” —Anastasiia Voitova, Head of security engineering at Cossack Labs"Fills [the need for an accessible and readable resource on cryptography], taking the reader on a journey through different cryptographic tools and how to use them, as well as the important 'what can go wrong' sections that fill the book. . . Serious Cryptography is an enjoyable introduction to the field, and one that comes highly recommended." —Yehuda Lindell, Head of Cryptography at Coinbase“A properly serious introduction . . it has the right structure on which one can build a thorough understanding of cryptography.”—Thomas Pornin, Technical Vice President, NCC Group

Jean-Philippe (JP) Aumasson is the Chief Security Officer and cofounder of Taurus SA, a Swiss financial tech company specializing in digital assets infrastructure. Since 2006, he has authored more than 60 research articles in the field of cryptography and designed the widely used hash functions BLAKE2 and SipHash. He speaks regularly at information security conferences and has presented at Black Hat and DEF CON.