François Chung, Ph.D.

Tag: cryptography

Cybersecurity specialization

Cybersecurity specialization

Coursera training, MOOC (2022). This specialization from The University of Maryland (US) covers the fundamental concepts underlying the construction of secure systems, including the hardware, the software and the human-computer interface, with the use of cryptography to secure interactions. These concepts are illustrated with examples drawn from modern practice, and augmented with hands-on exercises involving relevant tools and techniques.

Course 1: Usable security

Main topics:

  • Human-Computer Interaction (HCI);
  • Design methodology and prototyping;
  • A/B testing, quantitative and qualitative evaluation;
  • Secure interaction design;
  • Biometrics, two-factor authentication (2FA);
  • Privacy settings, data inference.

Course 2: Software security

Main topics:

  • Low-level security: attacks and exploits;
  • Defending against low-level exploits:
  • Web security: attacks and defenses;
  • Designing and building secure software;
  • Static program analysis;
  • Penetration and fuzz testing.

Course 3: Cryptography

Main topics:

  • Computational secrecy and modern cryptography;
  • Private-key encryption;
  • Message authentication codes;
  • Number theory;
  • Key exchange and public-key encryption;
  • Digital signatures.

Course 4: Hardware security

Main topics:

  • Digital system design: basics and vulnerabilities;
  • Designing intellectual property protection;
  • Physical attacks and modular exponentiation;
  • Side-channel attacks and countermeasures;
  • Hardware trojan detection;
  • Trusted integrated circuit;
  • Good practice and emerging technologies.

References

Training

Usable security (course certificate)
Software security (course certificate)
Cryptography (course certificate)
Hardware security (course certificate)

Related articles

Blockchain essentials (Cognitive Class training)
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency technologies (Coursera training)

Learn more

PKI for identity documents

PKI for identity documents

Zetes project @Brussels, Belgium (2021). A Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) is a set of physical components (e.g. computers and hardware), human procedures (e.g. checks and validation) and software (e.g. system and applications) intended to manage the public keys of the users of a system. The objective is the secure electronic transfer of information for a range of online activities, such as e-commerce and electronic identification (eID).

In the case of electronic identity documents, such as the identity card, a PKI makes it possible to bind public keys to the identity of citizens, whose personal information is not only printed on the identity card, but also stored in the identity card chip. This system not only allows citizens to use their card to identify themselves online (authentication), but also to sign digital documents using a Qualified Electronic Signature (QES).

A PKI can also be used in an international scheme, such as for the verification of passports at country borders. In that case, a country emits passports for its citizens and also puts in place a PKI to allow other countries to check those passports. This means that, when a citizen presents a passport at the border control, the inspection system checks the identity information both printed on the passport and stored in the passport chip.

As a Functional Analyst and Product Owner within Zetes People ID’s development team, my tasks are related to the analysis of PKI software needs, whether internal or from the customer (e.g. requirement gathering and product presentation), PKI software implementation (e.g. software releases and documentation) and project management (e.g. project coordination during change requests).

References

Related article

Identity proofing (Zetes project)

Learn more

Quantum computing and physics

Quantum computing and physics

Udemy training, MOOC (2020). This online training presents quantum computing as the next wave of the software industry. Quantum computers are exponentially faster than classical computers of today. Problems that were considered too difficult for computers to solve, such as simulation of protein folding in biological systems and cracking RSA encryption, are now possible through quantum computers. The training is primarily about analyzing the behavior of quantum circuits using math and quantum physics.

Section 1: Introduction

Main topics:

  • Why learn about quantum computing?
  • How is quantum computing different?

Section 2: Quantum cryptography

Main topics:

  • Experiments with photon polarization;
  • No-cloning theorem;
  • Encoding with XOR;
  • Encryption with single-use shared-secrets;
  • Encoding data in photon polarization.

Section 3: Foundation

Main topics:

  • Probability;
  • Complex numbers;
  • Matrix algebra;
  • Matrix multiplication;
  • Logic circuits.

Section 4: Math model for quantum physics

Main topics:

  • Modeling physics with math;
  • Substractive probabilities through complex numbers;
  • Modeling superposition through matrices.

Section 5: Quantum physics of spin states

Main topics:

  • Matrix representation of quantum state;
  • State vector;
  • Experiments with spin.

Section 6: Modeling quantum spin states with math

Main topics:

  • Analysis of experiments;
  • Dirac bra-ket notation;
  • Random behavior.

Section 7: Reversible and irreversible state transformations

Main topics:

  • Irreversible transformations measurement;
  • Reversible state transformations.

Section 8: Multi-qubit systems

Main topic:

  • Multi-qubit systems.

Section 9: Quantum entanglement

Main topic:

  • Quantum entanglement.

Section 10: Quantum computing model

Main topics:

  • Quantum circuits;
  • Reversible gates;
  • CNOT and CCNOT gates;
  • Universal and Fredkin gates;
  • Superposition and entanglement on quantum gates.

Section 11: Quantum programming with Microsoft Q#

Main topics:

  • Q# simulator hardware architecture;
  • Measuring superposition states;
  • Effect of superposition on quantum gates;
  • Toffoli gate;
  • Programming quantum computers.

Section 12: IBM quantum experience

Main topic:

  • IBM quantum experience.

Section 13: Conclusion

Main topic:

  • Speedup revisited.

References

Training

Related articles

Digital Annealer (Fujitsu project)
DataNews 2020 (FR) (magazine article, French version)
DataNews 2020 (NL) (magazine article, Dutch version)

Learn more