Simon Singh

Includes a history of how codes have affected the world, from the World Wars to the death of Mary, Queen of Scots, and also looks at what the future holds for the field of cryptography.

The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography

The Code Book

Tobias V. Langhoff

I have a romantic view of old-fashioned, analog cryptography (and stenography). Every time I read about it, I feel like a kid again, sitting in a treehouse with the neighboring kids who make up our small detective/spy club, encrypting messages we hoped someone would care to attempt to read. If I were born a decade or two earlier, I surely would have become a ham radio operator. Recommendations for spy novels that capture this childish feeling are appreciated.

This book details the world history of cryptography, all the way from simple letter substitution (which was easily broken once scholars discovered frequency analysis) to the possibilities presented by future quantum computers (which would render all current cryptography broken, but make way for unbreakable encryption). This history is presented as the evolution of cryptography by codebreaking selection.

The book pedagogically explains in layman’s terms how each major cipher used throughout history works, and how its ingenious creators considered them unbreakable. Inevitably, it was broken, through an equal spark of ingenuity, and the world moved its secret communiques to another cipher, thinking that this time they had found the one that was impossible to crack, and the cycle begins again – a mental arms race between mathematicians and logicians.

Sprinkled through this historical timeline are extremely interesting stories and anecdotes. I was happy that Singh give the Polish researchers who broke Enigma’s encryption the credit they deserve (something The Imitation Game does not, the recent film about Alan Turing and Bletchley Park, which are also given ample discussion in the book). These stories read as thrilling, miniature, real-life spy novels in their own right, and I've checked out the "further reading" section on each of them.

Singh also touches upon the inherent conflicts of interest between the public, who want to guard their data as securely as possible, and government agencies, who want to be able to break encryption to safeguard national security. As the book explains, in the early days of computer cryptography, this was easily achieved because governments had access to vast computing resources compared to the public. This book was written in 1999, however, and after its publication – and especially after 9/11 – one such agency in particular, the NSA, has become infamous in this regard. Indeed, just as I’m typing up this review (literally!), Apple has publicly announced that they defy an FBI order of building a backdoor into the iPhone. After reading this book, and its clairvoyant Chapter 7 (about the heralding of the Information Age, or the Infocalypse), it becomes quite clear why Apple felt the need to write this customer letter.

A minor complaint: Singh admits he has left out some important stories and ciphers, which is inevitable, but I was disappointed that he presented a few ciphers considered unbreakable without explaining how they were eventually broken. An example of this is the ADFGVX cipher. I feel I now understand the string of ciphers that make up the evolution of cryptography through history, but although I understand there are some intentional holes in that understanding because of complete omissions, I feel slightly cheated because some of the holes were presented but never plugged by the book.

All in all a fantastic and exhilerating book for anyone interesting in cryptography, communication, secrecy, war (both hot and cold), technology, history and everything between.

Suyash Goylit

Amazing book. A profound, yet comprehensible history of cryptography for anyone remotely interested in codes and ciphers.

Matija

Beautiful insight into cryptography throughout history (up until 1999.). Much more interesting than I anticipated. 

The most beautiful part is foreshadowing bitcoin, which today stands strong on the grounds of breakthrough concepts explained throughout the second half of the book.

Anthony

This book was an exceptional introduction to all things secrecy. It's light on technical details (but just definitely enough to wet the appetite). The author does a great job of crafting stories through history to keep you captivated. Secrecy has had a fascinating place in our development as a civilization. I also love when authors recommend further reading. Simon has done this and I can't wait to dig into some more books!

Garrett Jansen

Great insight into the basics and even the more advanced ideas behind keeping privacy. The last chapter was enough to make my head spin. Will keep the book and re-read should I need any refresher on cryptography concepts.

brendan sudol

fascinating look at cryptography through the ages. the clever, resourceful, and determined code breakers were inspiring

A book thay gives you a complete story of Cryptology and its future. Even though it's a old published book, it's actual for the technology we use nowadays. It's very interesting and complete, but you need to take your time to understand everything.

In his first book since the bestselling Fermat's Enigma, Simon Singh offers the first sweeping history of encryption, tracing its evolution and revealing the dramatic effects codes have had on wars, nations, and individual lives. From Mary, Queen of Scots, trapped by her own code, to the Navajo Code Talkers who helped the Allies win World War II, to the incredible (and incredibly simple) logisitical breakthrough that made Internet commerce secure, The Code Book tells the story of the most powerful intellectual weapon ever known: secrecy. Throughout the text are clear technical and mathematical explanations, and portraits of the remarkable personalities who wrote and broke the world's most difficult codes. Accessible, compelling, and remarkably far-reaching, this book will forever alter your view of history and what drives it. It will also make you wonder how private that e-mail you just sent really is.

Kiley

Sagar Rathna Sabapathy

Christian Bager Bach Houmann

chris

Kiran Kumar M R

Pedro Figueiredo

Provides young adults with a review of cryptography, its evolution over time, and its purpose throughout history from the era of Julius Caesar to the modern day.

How to Make It, Break It, Hack It, Crack it

Alphan Günaydın

Brian

"Dès la plus haute Antiquité, militaires, hommes d'Éat ou amants ont cherché à mettre au point les codes secrets les plus inviolables possibles. Ce livre retrace les grandes étapes de l'histoire de la lutte sans fin qui oppose ceux qui les inventent à ceux qui les percent.

The Code Book The Science of Secrecy from Ancient Egypt to Quantum Cryptography

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