Books on cryptography
Books on cryptography have been published sporadically and with highly variable quality for a long time. This is despite the tempting, though superficial, paradox that secrecy is of the essence in sending confidential messages — see Kerckhoffs' principle. In contrast, the revolutions in cryptography and secure communications since the 1970s are well covered in the available literature. Early history An early example of a book about cryptography was a Roman work, now lost and known only by references. Many early cryptographic works were esoteric, mystical, and/or reputation-promoting; cryptography being mysterious, there was much opportunity for such things. At least one work by Trithemius was banned by the Catholic Church and put on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum as being about black magic or witchcraft. Many writers claimed to have invented unbreakable ciphers. None were, though it sometimes took a long while to establish this. In the 19th century, the general standard improved somewhat (e.g., works by Auguste Kerckhoffs, Friedrich Kasiski, and Étienne Bazeries). Colonel Parker Hitt and William Friedman in the early 20th century also wrote books on cryptography. These authors, and others, mostly abandoned any mystical or magical tone. Open literature versus classified literature With the invention of radio, much of military communications went wireless, allowing the possibility of enemy interception much more readily than tapping into a landline. This increased the need to protect communications. By the end of World War I, cryptography and its literature began to be officially limited. One exception was the 1931 book The American Black Chamber by Herbert Yardley, which gave some insight into American cryptologic success stories, including the Zimmermann telegram and the breaking of Japanese codes during the Washington Naval Conference. List Overview of cryptography Bertram, Linda A. / Dooble, Gunther van / et al. (Eds.): Nomenclatura: Encyclopedia of modern Cryptography and Internet Security - From AutoCrypt and Exponential Encryption to Zero-Knowledge-Proof Keys, 2019, . Piper, Fred and Sean Murphy, Cryptography : A Very Short Introduction This book outlines the major goals, uses, methods, and developments in cryptography. Significant books Significant books on cryptography include: Aumasson, Jean-Philippe (2017), Serious Cryptography: A Practical Introduction to Modern Encryption. No Starch Press, 2017, . Presents modern cryptography in a readable way, suitable for practitioners, software engineers, and others who want to learn practice-oriented cryptography. 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. Aumasson, Jean-Philippe (2021), Crypto Dictionary: 500 Tasty Tidbits for the Curious Cryptographer. No Starch Press, 2021, . Ultimate desktop dictionary with hundreds of definitions organized alphabetically for all things cryptographic. The book also includes discussions of the threat that quantum computing is posing to current cryptosystems and a nod to post-quantum algorithms, such as lattice-based cryptographic schemes. Bertram, Linda A. / Dooble, Gunther van: Transformation of Cryptography - Fundamental concepts of Encryption, Milestones, Mega-Trends and sustainable Change in regard to Secret Communications and its Nomenclatura, 2019, . Candela, Rosario (1938). The Military Cipher of Commandant Bazeries. New