3
votes
6answers
300 views

Where can I begin to study the math behind modern cryptography?

I've been studying (more like breathing and eating) crypto for almost a year now, implementing algorithms, reading books, studying code, etc. The deeper I go in, the more I realize there is; I feel ...
1
vote
2answers
157 views

How hard is to find the operators of an addition knowing the sum of them?

I want to learn whether or no there is a cryptographic primitive,scheme assumption that is based on the following hard problem if it is hard . By hard we mean that we have a polynomial adversary: The ...
5
votes
2answers
688 views

Why do block ciphers need a non-linear component (like an S-box)?

Why is there a requirement of "Non-Linear functions" as a component of many popular block ciphers (e.g. the S-box in DES or 3DES)? How does it make the cipher more secure? The only intuition I have ...
3
votes
1answer
211 views

Is XOR in a CBC-like mode secure?

Assuming that $K_{n}$, $P_{n}$, and $C_{n}$ are individual bytes of the key, plaintext, and ciphertext respectively. The first byte of ciphertext is computed like this: $C_{1} = K_{1} \oplus P_{1}$ ...
8
votes
3answers
446 views

What is the best way to put a backdoor in an encryption system?

How can you put a backdoor into an encryption algorithm? Are there any techniques that can be used to reduce the time it takes to break a key? I am looking for practical examples encryption schemes ...