Cryptology References
This page contains literary and website references as well as a synopsis of definitions and terms used in cryptology. It is neither complete nor definitive. Minor variances are omitted to allow the non specialist to use the list. Any glaring errors or omissions can be reported on by using the comments button at the bottom of the page.
Library References
- "Alan Turing" Hodges and Hofstadter
- "Battle of Wits: The Complete Story of Codebreaking in World War II" by Stephen Budiansky
- "Between Silk and Cyanide: A Codemaker's War, 1941-1945" Leo Marks
- "Classical Cryptology Course" Randall Nicholls
- "Codebreakers: The Inside Story of Bletchley Park" Hinsley and Stripp, Oxford University Press [1994]
- "Code Breaking: History and Exploration" Rudolf Kippenhahn, Overlook Press [2000]
- "Codes and Ciphers" Peter Way, Aldus Books UK [1977]
- "Cryptanalysis" Helen Fouché Gaines, Dover [1939]
- "Cryptonomicon" Neal Stephenson - fictional, based on history
- "Enigma" Hugh Sebag-Montefiore
- "The Code Book: The Evolution of Secrecy from Mary, Queen of Scots to Quantum Cryptography"
- "The CodeBreakers" David Kahn, Signet [1967]
- "Top Secret Data Encryption Techniques" Gilbert Held, Sams [1993]
Useful Web Sites
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Terminology
- Cipher
- A mapping algorithm that is applied to a fixed number of characters at a time with an intent of concealing the contents of the message.
- Code
- A mapping algorithm that is applied to a variable number of characters (according to linguistic entities) at a time with an intent of concealing the contents of the message.
- Commercial Code
- A code used in business primarily to reduce cost by shortening messages. It involves no secrecy. The prime example is the 'Philips' Code.
- Crib
- A word or phrase that might be expected in the plaintext that can be a "wedge" or test for decryption. More...
- Cryptanalysis
- The study of methods of reading enciphered and encoded messages without original knowledge of the cipher method used or the current keys.
- Cryptography
- The study of methods of enciphering and deciphering messages to conceal the contents of a message.
- Cryptology
- The study of both cryptography (enciphering and deciphering) and cryptanalysis (breaking or cracking a code system or individual messages).
- Deciphering
- The procedure of turning enciphered text into plain text with prior knowledge of the algorithms or keys involved. This is what the intended message receiver does.
- Decryption
- The science of turning enciphered text into plain text without prior knowledge of the algorithms or keys involved. This is what the interceptor or 'cracker' does.
- Digraphs
- A plaintext character pairing technique that prevents frequency analysis of commonly occurring pairs such as 'qu'. Note that trigraphs (three characters at a time) is an extension of the theme.
- Homophones
- Several replacement letters for the same letter in plaintext
- Key
- A word or phrase that modifies the enciphering/deciphering process in such a way that knowledge of the algorithm alone is insufficient to decipher an enciphered message.
- Monoalphabet
- A single mapping of plaintext letters to ciphertext letters.
- Nomenclature
- Half code and half cipher, it was a list of word/syllable substitutions and cipher alphabet with homophones.
- Nulls
- Meaningless letters used to confuse by modifying frequency distributions or predictability. Sometimes used to fill a message to a specific length.
- Plaintext
- The original message to be encoded or enciphered
- Polyalphabet
- A method where several mappings of plaintext letters to ciphertext letters occur in a message.
- Steganography
- The art of concealing a message's existence. One example would be through the use of photographic microdots.
- Substitution
- Enciphering by replacing one letter by another.
- Transposition
- Enciphering by shuffling the order of letters.