How Do I Get Into Cryptography?

Almost every day I get asked about how someone can get into cryptography. Well, it can take a while to develop a deep understanding, but here’s my tips:

• Try and lay out the topic areas for your learning. These include: Hashing, Symmetric Key, Key Exchange, Public Key, Key Derivation Functions (KDFs), Message Authentication Codes (MACs), Tunnelling (eg TLS), and Digital Signatures. Do not go onto another topic until you fully understand the current one.
• OpenSSL is your friend and the Swiss Army Knife of Cryptography. Almost every current cryptography method can be found in OpenSSL, so find our about everything it does:

OpenSSL

• Cover both the theory and the practice. Overall, if you understand the theory and not the practice, you will not be re-enforcing your learning. Also, if you know the practice and not the theory, you will be opening up you developments to weaknesses.
• Pick a topic that you like, such as hashing, symmetric key or public key encryption, and dive in and try to learn as much as you can on each topic. Try and avoid just surface learning them…