How safe is 'safe' when using the internet as a communication channel?

With information transfers taking place more commonly on the internet nowadays, via email or electronic payment systems like PayPal, the integrity of the internet as a secure means for communication has become an obsession that is very real to both end-users, and the programmers behind the digital technology. One particular question has repeatedly surfaced since the birth of the internet and continues to arrest internet users today: will information or content sent via the internet, be intercepted and obtained by others for their own ends?

Edward Snowden raised this issue of internet surveillance to public awareness and into political agendas in 2013; that "Big Brothers" are sniffing through our emails and intercepting our phone conversations to spy on us as we go about our everyday lives. Internet service providers and Telcos—despite their protests—are in fact, the culprits to the crime. Therefore, how much faith should we have about sending confidential information down the Internet line? Moreover, with today's technology for processing Big Data—reading, and filtering every single piece of information from emails and financial transactions—how safe is 'safe' when using the Internet as a communication channel? Are 'secure channels' truly secure?

Prof. Boris S Verkhovsky from the New Jersey Institute of Technology, USA, looks into securing information sent via the Internet by examining

• methods in cryptography (secret communication between initiated parties);
• Cryptanalysis (how to break the encryption algorithms based on computational complexity of integer factorization and discrete logarithm problems);
• How to provide a reliable transmission of information via unreliable communication channels and;
• How to exploit a synergetic effect that stems from combining the cryptographic and information assurance protocols.

In his book "Integer Algorithms in Cryptology and Information Assurance" published recently by World Scientific,.Prof. Verkhovsky outlines various ways (algorithms and protocols) for secret and reliable communication—presenting the "what" and "how" behind implementing the proposed cryptographic methodology (algorithms).

Prof. Boris Verkhovsky, is a recipient of the USSR Ministry of Radio-Electronics Award; the Academy of Sciences of the USSR Award; the Alvin Johnson Award; the Millennium Award; and the Medal of Excellence. In his book,

"Integer Algorithms in Cryptology and Information Assurance" consists of five parts (in 28 chapters); it is a collection of the author's own innovative approaches in algorithms and protocols for secret and reliable communication. It addresses the issues of modern cryptography and cryptanalysis in a form that is easy to read and understand. This publication contains innovative cryptographic algorithms; computationally efficient algorithms for information assurance; new methods to solve the classical problem of integer factorization, which plays a key role in cryptanalysis; and numerous illustrative examples and tables that facilitate the understanding of the proposed algorithms.

The fundamental ideas contained within are not based on temporary advances in technology, which might become obsolete in several years. The problems addressed in the book have their own intrinsic computational complexities, and the ideas and methods described in the book will remain important for years to come.

More information:
The hardcover of the book retails for US$142 / £94. More information on the book can be found at: www.worldscientific.com/worldscibooks/10.1142/9325

Provided by World Scientific Publishing