Category Archives: academicpapers

Evidence for the Security of PKCS #1 Digital Signatures

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This is interesting research: "On the Security of the PKCS#1 v1.5 Signature Scheme": Abstract: The RSA PKCS#1 v1.5 signature algorithm is the most widely used digital signature scheme in practice. Its two main strengths are its extreme simplicity, which makes it very easy to implement, and that verification of signatures is significantly faster than for DSA or ECDSA. Despite the… Continue reading Evidence for the Security of PKCS #1 Digital Signatures→

New Findings About Prime Number Distribution Almost Certainly Irrelevant to Cryptography

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Lots of people are e-mailing me about this new result on the distribution of prime numbers. While interesting, it has nothing to do with cryptography. Cryptographers aren’t interested in how to find prime numbers, or even in the distribution of prime numbers. Public-key cryptography algorithms like RSA get their security from the difficulty of factoring large composite numbers that are… Continue reading New Findings About Prime Number Distribution Almost Certainly Irrelevant to Cryptography→

Using Hacked IoT Devices to Disrupt the Power Grid

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This is really interesting research: "BlackIoT: IoT Botnet of High Wattage Devices Can Disrupt the Power Grid": Abstract: We demonstrate that an Internet of Things (IoT) botnet of high wattage devices — such as air conditioners and heaters — gives a unique ability to adversaries to launch large-scale coordinated attacks on the power grid. In particular, we reveal a new… Continue reading Using Hacked IoT Devices to Disrupt the Power Grid→

John Mueller and Mark Stewart on the Risks of Terrorism

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Another excellent paper by the Mueller/Stewart team: "Terrorism and Bathtubs: Comparing and Assessing the Risks": Abstract: The likelihood that anyone outside a war zone will be killed by an Islamist extremist terrorist is extremely small. In the United States, for example, some six people have perished each year since 9/11 at the hands of such terrorists — vastly smaller than… Continue reading John Mueller and Mark Stewart on the Risks of Terrorism→

New Ways to Track Internet Browsing

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Interesting research on web tracking: "Who Left Open the Cookie Jar? A Comprehensive Evaluation of Third-Party Cookie Policies: Abstract: Nowadays, cookies are the most prominent mechanism to identify and authenticate users on the Internet. Although protected by the Same Origin Policy, popular browsers include cookies in all requests, even when these are cross-site. Unfortunately, these third-party cookies enable both cross-site… Continue reading New Ways to Track Internet Browsing→

Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions

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Interesting research: "Dancing Pigs or Externalities? Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions": Abstract: Accurately modeling human decision-making in security is critical to thinking about when, why, and how to recommend that users ado… Continue reading Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions→

Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions

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Interesting research: "Dancing Pigs or Externalities? Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions": Abstract: Accurately modeling human decision-making in security is critical to thinking about when, why, and how to recommend that users adopt certain secure behaviors. In this work, we conduct behavioral economics experiments to model the rationality of end-user security decision-making in a realistic online experimental system simulating a… Continue reading Measuring the Rationality of Security Decisions→

Identifying People by Metadata

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Interesting research: "You are your Metadata: Identification and Obfuscation of Social Media Users using Metadata Information," by Beatrice Perez, Mirco Musolesi, and Gianluca Stringhini. Abstract: Metadata are associated to most of the information we produce in our daily interactions and communication in the digital world. Yet, surprisingly, metadata are often still categorized as non-sensitive. Indeed, in the past, researchers and… Continue reading Identifying People by Metadata→