A practical guide to Cryptography and its use in the Internet and other communication networks. This overview takes the reader through basic issues and on to more advanced concepts, to cover all levels of interest. Coverage includes all key mathematical concepts, standardisation, authentication, elliptic curve cryptography, and algorithm modes and protocols (including SSL, TLS, IPSec, SMIME, & PGP protocols). * Details what the risks on the internet are and how cryptography can help * Includes a chapter on interception which is unique amongst competing books in this field * Explains Public Key Infrastructures (PKIs) - currently the most important issue when using cryptography in a large organisation * Includes up-to-date referencing of people, organisations, books and Web sites and the latest information about recent acts and standards affecting encryption practice * Tackles the practical issues such as the difference between SSL and IPSec, which companies are active on the market and where to get further information

PKI (public-key infrastructure) enables the secure exchange of data over otherwise unsecured media, such as the Internet. PKI is the underlying cryptographic security mechanism for digital certificates and certificate directories, which are used to authenticate a message sender. Because PKI is the standard for authenticating commercial electronic transactions,Understanding PKI, Second Edition, provides network and security architects with the tools they need to grasp each phase of the key/certificate life cycle, including generation, publication, deployment, and recovery.

With the recent Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, public key cryptography, digital signatures, and digital certificates are finally emerging as a ubiquitous part of the Information Technology landscape. Although these technologies have been around for over twenty years, this legislative move will surely boost e-commerce act

The practical, results-focused PKI primer for every security developer and IT manager!-- Easy-to-understand explanations of the key concepts behind PKI and PKIX.-- Answers the most important questions about PKI deployment, operation, and administration.-- Covers trust models, certificate validation, credentials management, key rollover, and much more.The Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and related standards are gaining powerful momentum as a solution for a wide range of security issues associated with electronic commerce. This book represents the first complete primer on PKI for both technical and non-technical professionals. Unlike academic treatises on PKI, this book is focused on getting results -- and on answering the critical questions implementers and managers have about PKI deployment, operation, and administration. The book begins with an overview of the security problems PKI is intended to solve; the fundamentals of secret key cryptography, and the significant challenges posed by key distribution. Messaoud Benantar introduces the foundations of public key cryptography, and the essential role played by public key assurance systems. Once you understand the basics, he introduces PKIX, the Internet Public Key Infrastructure standard, and shows how to leverage it in constructing secure Internet solutions. Benantar covers PKIX standards, notational language, and data encoding schemes; the Internet PKI technology; PKI trust models; certificate va

Most books on public key infrastructure (PKI) seem to focus on asymmetric cryptography, X.509 certificates, certificate authority (CA) hierarchies, or certificate policy (CP), and certificate practice statements. While algorithms, certificates, and theoretical policy are all excellent discussions, the real-world issues for operating a commercial or

For every opportunity presented by the information age, there is an opening to invade the privacy and threaten the security of the nation, U.S. businesses, and citizens in their private lives. The more information that is transmitted in computer-readable form, the more vulnerable we become to automated spying. It's been estimated that some 10 billion words of computer-readable data can be searched for as little as $1. Rival companies can glean proprietary secrets . . . anti-U.S. terrorists can research targets . . . network hackers can do anything from charging purchases on someone else's credit card to accessing military installations. With patience and persistence, numerous pieces of data can be assembled into a revealing mosaic. Cryptography's Role in Securing the Information Society addresses the urgent need for a strong national policy on cryptography that promotes and encourages the widespread use of this powerful tool for protecting of the information interests of individuals, businesses, and the nation as a whole, while respecting legitimate national needs of law enforcement and intelligence for national security and foreign policy purposes. This book presents a comprehensive examination of cryptographyâ€"the representation of messages in codeâ€"and its transformation from a national security tool to a key component of the global information superhighway. The committee enlarges the scope of policy options and offers specific conclusions and recommendations for decision makers. Cryptography's Role in Securing the Information Society explores how all of us are affected by information security issues: private companies and businesses; law enforcement and other agencies; people in their private lives. This volume takes a realistic look at what cryptography can and cannot do and how its development has been shaped by the forces of supply and demand. How can a business ensure that employees use encryption to protect proprietary data but not to conceal illegal actions? Is encryption of voice traffic a serious threat to legitimate law enforcement wiretaps? What is the systemic threat to the nation's information infrastructure? These and other thought-provoking questions are explored. Cryptography's Role in Securing the Information Society provides a detailed review of the Escrowed Encryption Standard (known informally as the Clipper chip proposal), a federal cryptography standard for telephony promulgated in 1994 that raised nationwide controversy over its "Big Brother" implications. The committee examines the strategy of export control over cryptography: although this tool has been used for years in support of national security, it is increasingly criticized by the vendors who are subject to federal export regulation. The book also examines other less well known but nevertheless critical issues in national cryptography policy such as digital telephony and the interplay between international and national issues. The themes of Cryptography's Role in Securing the Information Society are illustrated throughout with many examplesâ€"some alarming and all instructiveâ€"from the worlds of government and business as well as the international network of hackers. This book will be of critical importance to everyone concerned about electronic security: policymakers, regulators, attorneys, security officials, law enforcement agents, business leaders, information managers, program developers, privacy advocates, and Internet users.